


The Lone Wolf

by Kessho



Category: Assassination Classroom
Genre: F/M, Falling In Love, Reader-Insert, Well I try, a lot of swearing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-11-10
Packaged: 2020-10-28 04:49:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 21,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20772806
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kessho/pseuds/Kessho
Summary: Being sent to class 3-E meant, at least socially, death. Yet you, the infamous [Surname] [Name], the girl that prefers to solve problems with violence than your mind, give a rat’s ass about it, don’t you? Still, getting kicked off the kendo club wasn’t something you were proud of, especially when you were the captain…But was it your fault that the bastard was being a huge dick? No. Was it your fault that he was talking smack those poor souls in 3-E? No. Was it your fault that he got punched as a result?Well… yes.[Akabane Karma X Reader]





	1. [00] The Lone Wolf: Kicked Out

There were times when words could cut you down much like the swords, albeit wooden, that you use at the kendo club. Sure, these times were minuscule and so rare that it wouldn’t completely be far-fetched to state that the amount of times you were rendered speechless and paralysed by mere _words _would be countable on one hand - still, the fact remains that you weren’t immune to these things as you would have liked.

And today, on a grey Tuesday afternoon where the Sun just won’t shine through the clouds that you realised it __probably __wasn’t a good idea to punch your senior in the face (and… other places, but he certainly did elaborate on the bruise on his face a lot), however, such feeling and mindset would not be revealed to you until much later - after school to be exact.

You were making your way towards the usual place where the kendo club was, with your eyes occupied by scanning each line of kanji or hiragana on the paper that details what the club will do today, you still managed to walk towards the club without any trouble. Well, by this point, you dare say you could walk there from anywhere in Kunugigaoka blindfolded - that has how second natured the place had become. Heck, even the less-than-ideal weather couldn’t put you out of your cheerful mood that positively soared higher than ever after what had occurred yesterday.

Glancing at the clock face that you forced peek out from under the blazer sleeve after folding the piece of paper and placing it in your blazer pocket, you clarified that you were a good twenty minutes early, something that was usual for you because you need to set up and run through the time plan before delivering it to the club.

… You know, boring, mundane things that a club leader was supposed to do.

Swinging your wooden sword - bokken****[1]**** \- out for the world to see (not that there was anyone nearby, people were__ slightly__ scared of you) by resting it upon your shoulder, you stepped up your pace to the gym, the school bag secured tightly in the other hand as you couldn’t wait to start beating the __shit__\- uh, sparring with others.

Hey, it wasn’t your fault that your skills were better than the others. You don’t boast, despite rumours suggesting otherwise, but the cold, hard truth was laid out for the club members to see and experience: you just were on another level compared to them. No, scratch that, quite possibly two levels.

Still, the prospect of honing your skills even further (along with the __event __that had miraculously took place) couldn’t dim your mood. And that, by itself, was another miraculous thing, as with your fierce eyes would suggest, nothing much would lift your spirits up, and a smile, however tiny it may appear to be, would be considered an absolute miracle by others.

Smile or not though, those fierce eyes would send anybody scurrying away as fast as they could, especially when it was moulded into a soul-wrecking glare that would paralyse you from the head down much like the eyes of Medusa in mythology. Then not to mention your mindset of solving every problem with violence (or in your case, using shinai****[2]**** and/or bokken), which unsurprisingly made you more isolated at school with no friends you could count on.

It was a rather pitiful existence, enhanced even more so with your natural figure. Sure, practising those particular set of skills relating to kendo do have its benefits, such as the development of muscles, which in turn, made you more feared than ever. __And__ you were blessed with strikingly good looks (that had more downsides in the form of confessions) - yet the two best friends of every woman, the __girls__, shall we say, were… well, practically non-existent.

And it was those points, though perhaps not counting the ones that described your figure, that earned you the nickname of being ‘Lone Wolf’, the shortened name of yours anyway, as with the violent personality that was forced out combined with your rather wild appearance, especially with your weird short hair (that others mumble ‘weeb****[3]****’ under their breaths - it was more irritating and annoying than insulting to you) gave birth to the nickname.

Truly, if only your __girls __were more prominent, or grew the short hair out, then there would be a more concrete evidence of your gender than solely wearing a skirt… it doesn’t really help with the fact that your speech pattern was more aggressive and, shall we say, __masculine__, which pops the question of people wondering about your true gender in hushed whispers. Seriously, are you really a female or not? Sometimes even I have to wonder-

** **“Hah?!”** **

… And that, I believe, paints an overall picture about this individual known as [Surname] [Name], whom, coincidentally, was the heroine of our story.

Within those paragraphs, you finally arrived at the gym, where the kendo club resides. Despite the clouds overhead darkening, making an ominous feeling blossom inside you that somehow, you suddenly had second thoughts of opening the double doors. Almost. But you shook that feeling off nevertheless, brushing it off as nothing but nerves. After all, no matter how long you had been captain (a whole whooping year and eight months), you never really got over the prospect of talking to others all the while refraining from knocking their head open - was it __your __fault that they were so utterly irritating with their fake smiles and empty respect? No.

Gritting your teeth at their laughs and fake-ass smiles, you opened the doors with too much strength than you had imagined. They burst open on impact, and your glare were met with, surprisingly, several pairs of eyes that just happened to be inside the gym.

_The heck? Do I have to beat the basketball club _again _for defiling the sacred room despite the arrangements?_

_ _

Upon locking eyes with the only set that didn’t quickly look elsewhere, you realised they belonged to the vice-captain.

His stature was at least a head taller than you, and the muscles that peeked out from the clothing - which was downright weird as he, along with the other members, was fully dressed for sparring, _and _you were a good twenty minutes early! - were well toned, highlighting his dedication on the club and sport (_was_ kendo considered a sport anyway? No matter). He certainly was not fooling around with the respected position.

“From hence force, the club captain, [Surname] [Name],” you didn’t even have time to open your mouth and greet him (well, more like <strike>threaten</strike> question him what all this was about) before his own voice cut through the quiet room, “shall no longer be involved with the kendo club, along with us. For putting our good classmate through torture, you are hereby banished from the club and main school grounds!”

Jesus, you briefly wondered <strike>(much like the narrator did paragraphs earlier)</strike> just how long could he keep up with such a formal statement. Still, with the way he coldly gazed at you without a single hint of remorse in his eyes made matters clear: there was no explaining… or rather, there was no _use_ in explaining what really had transpired.

_ Well now. Clear, logical, analysing and completely straight to the point. He doesn’t beat around the bush… still, why call every kendo club member here? Wouldn’t it be more efficient to privately talk to me or something? _

_ _

Like really, glancing at each of your club- your _former_ club members’ faces, your confusion only grew tenfold at the looks of utter impatience etched on most of their features. Heck, even one of them was swinging her shinai this way and that. Of course, her form was wrong - amateur’s mistake rather than anything really pressing - and it was only the growing discomfort at the immense pressure of you gritting your teeth too hard that saved her from a demonstration of how properly to wield the weapon. A demonstration that would surely boil down to the bruises scattered on her body.

Still, why call the _entire_ club here? Even they seemed to want to get this whole awkward ordeal done as quickly as possible, and a nagging voice at the back of your head which sounds just like a certain red-haired devil that you had the pleasure of knowing warned you (in his ‘I-don’t-give-a-flying-fuck’ tone) that there was more to this.

You were also willing to bet money at the idea that there certainly were others who _did not want to be here_ in the first place - evident by their growing discomfort visible on their faces and fidgeting. Though you didn’t know whether it was because of your presence, or just because of the sight of the wooden weapon perched on your shoulder.

_Hmm? Oh, I see…_ a wild smile appeared on your face as your brain registered what the _oh-so-respectable_ vice-captain was planing to do.

Calling the entire team here _despite_ them knowing about your personality and infamous anger?

Making the announcement public _despite_ not being able to predict your reactions?

And more importantly… completely singling you out?

Oh, this is just a play, a well rehearsed one judging by the smooth statement with no pause, with the goal of humiliating you.

“Oh? I don’t ever remembering giving the faculty my resignation form, _vice-captain_.” putting a strain on his title as harshly as you could, your smile grew wider, fully letting them view that singular fang which sat on your upper row of pure whites. “Do let me, the _former captain_, know how on Earth was I kicked out. _Vice-captain_.”

The smile was full on predatory, you couldn’t help it, honest! Yet you relished in the way nearly all of the members present recoiled slightly at your expression. In Kunugigaoka, it was hunt, or be hunted… or rather, kill or be killed (in terms of grading) - but the overall gist was the same.

“Didn’t you know, [Surname], your actions have consequences. And no title or infamy will get you out of the stunt you did yesterday.”

Ouch. Where has the “-san” went? You didn’t know which hurt you more, the lack of respect from one person whom _you _saw on an eye-to-eye basis, or your surname that you wanted to bury six feet under with some of your family members. Hey, guess you can’t have everything in life… not that you’ll ever admit all of them out loud.

A pan of… something unpleasant shot up your stomach, and your confident stance faltered for a split moment. It was minimal, and not many saw it, but the vice-captain that you didn’t want to taint your mind with his name realised what took place - he had been around you since middle school, after all. It caused his eyebrows shoot one centimetre up, and a small smile spread across his lips. A clear sign of letting you know he realised his words got to you.

How… gracious of him.

Ultimately though, you, being the lone wolf that laughs- uh, _howls_ in the face of danger (i.e. anything remotely unpleasant in your eyes), stood your ground, though the grip on your bokken did tighten.

But you knew, right from the moment that all these pairs of eyes met your own, it was a loosing fight.

“Thus as a result, that particular student filed a complaint - oh, pardon me, _that_ was an understatement. [Surname], you were supposed to be _expelled or suspended_, yet they changed your destiny in the last moment.”

Hmm, “they”? You could only decipher that it must meant someone perched quite high in the school hierarchy, possibly the chairman. Or not.

“[Surname], from hence force, you are excluded from the main school and kicked to class 3-E.”

A chorus of a singular audible gasp. A sound of something hard hitting the wooden flooring. The quiet mummers of swearing. Yet despite it all, despite you being sent to the social equivalent of death - and quite possibly the future too - you only sighed.

Ah well, not like you had friends that would turn their back on you. Or spit on you. Or kick you down. Or cut off your hair.

Honestly, the news was to be expected. You wondered when you could stop bullshitting your way through the school year terrorising each and every one of the students. Seems like they finally snapped.

Still, seeing the look on everyone’s faces turn 180 really did make you feel rather sick. From scaredy cats to worthless hunters who couldn’t wait to hunt you, the change was drastic. Ah well, again, it was to be expected - those who were in 3-E were treated less than dirt here. You guessed the only reason why they didn’t dare to put a single foot forward and start pounding your body here and then was either because of that menacing weapon, which was still in your hand, or deep down, your reign of terror-

** **“That was too harsh, you little shit.”** **

** **

Captain or not, your irritated voice still sent shivers down their backs, heck, you swore you saw one or two shiver under the intensity with your own eyeballs. The narrator, meanwhile, wasn’t really affected by it, rather unfortunate, you would say.

“But how will this club function without me? Not that it’s now any of my business.”

“For the time being, I will temporary take on the role of-”

“Yeah, I give a rat’s ass about this club now. Good luck polishing your shitty skills without me, bastards.”

You turned on your heels and left, though not at all forgetting to convey your anger at them by holding up a particular finger as you walked back out to the school grounds where it was heavily overcast. You also slammed the doors shut, of course, much like those angered cliché scenes in movies.

_What’s this?_ A question, unanswerable even by you, swirled in your mind as you started to walk your way back home. _Normally I would punch something or someone, but now, all I wanted to do is to… collapse onto my bed._

_ _

The infamous Lone Wolf of Kunugigaoka (behold,your glorious nickname in full), not destroying some sort of school or personal property when she was angry? That must had been a first. You placed your lack of interest on the dampening of your spirits-

With a ferocity that made tigers and lions stand down in fear, you roared in anger and swung the wooden weapon, as hard as you could, much like how a batter does his batting, completely ignoring your disastrous and vulnerable form. Right now, you just wanted to __hit __something.

And you did.

The sudden rustle of leaves that was only heard by nobody but you gave you all the hints at what you hit. And if that wasn’t enough, the few green bits that signified the turning from spring to summer did land ungracefully on your head and shoulders. You calmed down, taking deep breaths until your breathing was back to normal, before letting the bokken leave the tree trunk.

“Tch. The least you could do was to give more resistance.” you cursed the tree, especially at the mark that something _hard and fast_ purposely drove into the trunk itself.

So you did what most teenagers would do when they were angry near a tree. Abuse the poor plant by kicking its roots that just managed to peek above ground. Seriously, what had this tree ever done to you?! How violent… which was also the reason, or well, one of the __many __reasons why you never had any good friends. There were two, a blue haired ‘maiden’ whom was gendered male according to his birth certificate and the devil himself. But one was sent to 3-E, and the other was suspended for, according to the rumours anyway, killing a teacher or something? Though knowing him, the most he would do was beat someone up - um, much like you do really. Two peas in a pod, as they say - instead of actually committing first-degree murder.

Ah, you wouldn’t necessary call them your ‘friends’, just… perhaps more akin to ‘good acquaintances’ or ‘decent classmates’ (though they weren’t really in your class, per say…).

_You know what would _really _be funny? If it rains._

_ _

Great, after that little encounter which didn’t even take ten minutes, your good mood dispersed figuratively and literally. You joked to yourself about the idea of you being a central figure in a story or movie, or possibly a love interest, and thus along with it, the possibility of it raining.

“Ha! Good one, me. That was as funny as finding out-”

But you didn’t get to finish, as the first drops of rain splattered down on the paved ground below. You thought you were crying, as far-fetched as it sounds… your tear ducts were more or less empty by now, or had they fallen to disuse?

Heh, you didn’t know whether if certain parts of the human body _would _fall to disuse.

But it seems today you didn’t have your question answered. As another droplet of water wet the ground, the splash sound practically non-existent to you, you realised it was the heaven crying. Though again, you briefly entertained yourself by wondering whether it was God’s way of letting other’s feel your pain (or in this case, the fucking _sky_), or by letting the sky cry _for_ you.

_ Great. _

_ _

Ultimately, you did make it home, more dry than wet as the expense of the drenched bag. It was quiet and spacious as ever, of course, and the only noise was the ‘pitter-patter’ of the rain hitting a variety of surfaces outside.

_What’s this? _That same question, unanswerable by you even now, swirled in your mind as you lay in bed after marathoning the _‘Four Devas Arc’ _(again)in Gintama. You pondered the strange feeling that threatened to erupt from your chest as the looks on the kendo club members’ faces after the news of you being kicked to 3-E was made public. _Normally I would punch something or someone, well, technically, I did. Yet despite striking the tree, all I wanted to do, even right now, is to… is to collapse onto my bed._

_ _

And you did.

[Hair colour] sprawled across the pillow ungracefully as the wet strands (despite staying mostly dry, you still washed your hair. It was easier to wash and dry now that it was comparably shorter than before) of your natural colour invaded the otherwise white pillowcase. You didn’t care about the wetness your action brought you, but what you _did_ care was the possibility of catching a cold, so you pulled yourself up using your willpower.

“Damn that bastard.”

_ _

You didn’t know whom the cruse was for, the higher ups to placed you in 3-E? Or the vice-captain? The male whom you punched yesterday? Your parents with their fake smiles? The _fucking_ vice-captain? God for making you this way? Your grandmother? That vice-captainof the kendo club who you wanted to rip his head off? Or…

… the vice-captain.

Yeah, you were 95.63 percent sure that the curse was for the vice-captain whom you didn’t want to think of his name in fear of trashing your spotless room. You weren’t really bothered with the prospect of wrecking your own things, so long as they weren’t that expensive, it was actually the feeling of _tidying up_ was what made you stop breaking your own shit more times than healthy.

“Hey Gorilla-sensei.” you took out the last volume of Gintama, hand brushing each character in a tender fashion that would make anyone who knew you wonder whether you were kidnapped and replaced by an imposter. The finale of such an amazing series. The end of… your adolescence if you wanted to see it that way. “You’re so good at philosophies and metaphors, even if they are hidden by nonsensical shit. Tell me… _what… why am I feeling so dejected_?”

The characters remained immobile despite the cover that showed them jumping _in space_. Their laughter didn’t reach your ears, and their smiles were frozen in time, never to move. You put the volume back to its original place and sighed, now dragging yourself back downstairs in this empty house for dinner.

_ ‘Dinner’s in the fridge. Sorry I had to work overtime again. - Love, mum.’ _

Immaculate handwriting, accompanied by loopy lines and dots, was your mother’s style. You scrunched up the paper and opened the fridge door, the sight of your favourite meal greeting your eyes almost made a hint of warmth spread across your chest. But you extinguished that feeling in less than five seconds.

The house was spacious, but it was more empty than ever today, making you wonder if it was time to get a pet of some sorts.

Still, there was another question, the very same question that you asked yourself twice (and ‘Gorilla-sensei’ once) already, that plagued your head, never to find its answer.

It was a question that you contemplated over and over again for the next few days, never to find an answer.

Unbeknownst to you, unanswerable questions like these would become more and more frequent as your life in class 3-E starts.

* * *

****[1] ****Bokken

A weapon that’s shaped similar to a katana (though it may take on the form of other sword-based weapons). Like shinai, it’s used in kendo but it is more likely to be used for students to acclimate the feel of a real sword. There is a set of basic exercises is specifically carried out using a bokken which is said to be beneficial to all kendo students.

Bokken is __not __used for sparring.

****[2] ****Shinai

A weapon that’s shaped similar to a katana. It’s used alongside bokken in kendo, though practitioners usually use shinai than bokken in practise, as it’s made of bamboo rather than wood, it thus reduces the risks of being seriously injured.

Shinai is used for sparring.

****[3] ****Weeb

Weeb is considered an __insult __in Japan, from what I researched, so is ‘Otaku’. The two means someone who is completely immersed in anime and manga that it took over their life in the worst way possible.

** **Note:** **

Me, starting another story despite leaving my other WIPs: [Ah shit, here we go again.](https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/029/223/cover2.jpg)

This story will contain: swearing, a hint of violence, memes, slight fourth wall break, __lack of girls__, __maybe __vines, and references to other anime <strike>(mostly Gintama)</strike> that I know from the top of my head that probably doesn’t really correspond to the timeline of this manga/anime (e.g. 2017 anime in this ~2015 anime).


	2. [01] The Lone Wolf: Assassination Begins

You were irritated yesterday, yes, but that was absolutely _nothing_ compared to your mood today. In fact, on hindsight, you would have gladly hit a poor passer-by if your mood was switched. And glowering at the man in front of you, you had to grit your teeth - not so silently, mind you - to keep yourself from flinging up and attacking the guy all of a sudden.

Not that you would seriously injure him. He was with the Department of Defence after all. Besides, your much loved weapon was secured by one of his bodyguards as soon as they saw that dangerous wooden stick in your hands.

“So… what the fuck do you need to explain to me __oh so secretly __that we have to assemble like the fucking Avengers?! Besides, I have been patiently waiting here for __over three hours.__”

Crossing both of your legs and arms, you glared venomously at the suit clad man in front of you. Black hair slicked back and sharp eyes. This man was more stern and ‘professional’ than that bastard vice-captain. Though you also noted that he does look rather attractive in a suit…

The man drew in a sharp intake of breath before explaining the __real __purpose of 3-E this year, Long story short, he wants you (along with the class) to kill an… octopus? Human-octopus hybrid person… thing. Or it might be a squid instead. With comic yellow coloured skin and more tentacles than you can count, this mysterious “sensei” that now teaches the End Class was the same creature that left whatever was left of the moon intact out of the goodness of his heart.

All right, that last part you made up right on the spot, but the fact remains that he destroyed 70% of the moon in the blink of an eye.

No debris, no evidence left, there was __nothing __that showed the former image of the moon. Heck, for the babies born now onwards, they will probably believe that the moon has always been crescent shaped… like the one in Death City but less creepy.

You hoped that this creature won’t suddenly grow bored of teaching and decide to stick eyes, mouth and a nose on what was left of the moon one day.

“So… the government wants us to kill this octopus-squid creature.”

“Yes.”

“And that there’s a handsome amount of money involved.”

“That is correct. 100 million yen to be exact.”

Your eyebrows shot up immediately, almost retreating into the messy bangs of your rather short hair. 100 million?! Wow, what would __you __do with that much money? Go on a crazed shopping spree that would make Black Friday shoppers from overseas seem like angels? Buy yourself some height? Enlarge your __girls__? Nevertheless, with the knowledge that no military grade equipment did any long-lasting damage on that creature, your daydreams of buying real katana and meeting your idol “Gorilla-sensei” was cut short and were flushed straight down the drain.

“Wait, let me get this straight.” you had to refrain from whacking his head. Shame that they confiscated your wooden weapon beforehand. That man was from the Department of Defence (or something similar), and you inwardly laughed at why would they take your bokken when it was nothing but a long, wooden pole in his eyes? You dare say you could land two hits at most before he would blast your head off.

“Very well. Continue.” Jesus, even his speech style is similar to the vice-captain’s. You wondered whether they were secretly related. Wait… black hair, serious and ‘did-you-marry-me-or-your-job’ vibe…

You continued before that ridiculous conspiracy theory could spiral down any further.

“If national weapons, and we’re talking tanks, missiles and the like, were no match for this creature… then what makes you think a group of __students__ who are the lowest of the low, according to the school anyway, could kill this guy?!”

“It was his request. To be put in charge of teaching the students of 3-E.”

“And have you found out his motives?”

“That is of little importance.”

“Hey, shouldn’t you be worried that he’s putting a façade and the like? As they say to strike when the enemy’s at the most vulnerable.”

“Let me ask you this then,” another sharp inhale. Quiet, quick, and you suddenly had the feeling of being analysed by his onyx eyes. “With unpredictable responses, would you try to find his motives when one wrong move and everything would be vaporised in the blink of an eye?”

__Yes__. But you didn’t voice it out loud - you didn’t want to come off as suicidal. “I see your point.”

Still, you couldn’t shake off the feeling that there was more to this than what the wide smile on the picture shows. Wearing what seemed like a very traditional professor’s robes that one would often find in fantasy or traditional settings, the wide smirk (smile even? It was hard to decipher when the eyes were two small dots) that showed off his teeth in perfect condition gave nothing away… apart from the undeniable fact that this was a __creature__ and not, you know, a human.

“Hey, since normal weapons have little effect on him-” you pointed at the picture of the octopus, “-I have a request to make.”

The request was simple, because your wooden weapon was more or less useless (despite not quite believing what Kara- Kurama- (wait, this isn’t Naruto) Karasushi- the man said fully), you wanted for them to create a bokken, similar to what you have now, out of those special plastic that they used to make the knives.

And turns out the knives really __were __amazingly plastic. A slight pressure and it would bend easily… the thought of them toying with you did cross your mind, but at the sight of bodyguards - two of them in this room and two outside - as well as having the potential exits closed, that thought went out of the, albeit shut, window.

He complied, miraculously enough, and you had to stifle a snort. The Department of <strike>Mystery</strike> Defence, listening and agreeing to a proposition set by someone who wasn’t even twenty? Man, you should have recorded this conversation as evidence. Oh wait, this whole thing is an absolute secret (you also swore to it), only specifically known to those in 3-E so anyone will undergo memory wipe if it gets out.

Scary, scary.

“Hmph. Very well, I will do it. I will assassinate this octopus-squid hybrid.” raising the green knife that was of no harm to humans, you swiftly brought it down much like taking a sacrificial life in the ancient past. The tip went through the paper, straight through that smirking face of the damn creature, and with your strength, it easily stayed upright, jammed into the wooden table.

“Oh, by the way.” stopping the gather the class details, you stuffed the papers that had each 3-E member details with surprising delicacy into your bag. “I’m taking the character profiles. Don’t fret your heads off, I’ll burn them after I memorised everybody. After all, I will need to be a classmate to them.”

“Very well, you start tomorrow, [Surname].” another sharp intake. Just how much could he do before he get tired of the action? “By the way, while I do not understand why you waited for three hours, our destined meeting time is near twelve.”

You had just taken back your beloved bokken when Kara… when Not-Kurama’s statement made your body go frigid. What. The. Fuck. You had been played! Damn that email… normally teachers would be stepping on egg-shells around you, fearing a purple bruise somewhere on their body - as long as they don’t irritate you, they’re theoretically safe - yet now that you were oh-so-conveniently placed in the End Class, those bastards thought they could do anything and everything to humiliate and belittle you.

Needless to say, you kicked open the door with a scream, not caring at all of you destroyed the plank piece of wood or disrupted lessons. All you wanted was to kick and punch __something__. It was only when you sprinted out to the main school grounds, eyes set on abusing that same poor tree you left a mark on yesterday, when two students approached you. Their demeanour, hands in pockets and all mocking smiles, were all you needed to realise that they would spell nothing but trouble.

Great. No, seriously. Just in time for you to blow off some steam.

“Look! It’s the Lone Wolf. Oh but she has been kicked to 3-E, so now maybe she’ll shed her skin and reveal herself to be a sheep instead.” the glasses kid pointed an accusing finger at you as he smugly said his piece, confident that you were unable to do a thing.

“Oh? Then want to see how much could you endure this wolf’s beatings?”

“Hey, Sakura-knockoff****[1]****!” the female beside him, covered completely in make-up that makes one wonder where the ‘fake’ her ended and the ‘real’ began, sneered. “Don’t dirty the ground that you’re on. No wait… let’s go. I can smell the stench of 3-E on her already… __also__, being near her will contaminate me with __germs__.”

But their laughters were cut short when a wooden pole was slammed down into the ground between the two. Because of their close proximity, their toes just narrowly missed out from being severed or stabbed.

“Whoops. Looks like I missed.” you drawled out, each syllable slower than the last, as you inwardly chuckled at their terrified faces. “Hey, how ‘bout I just punch you in the face right now? So you wouldn’t “smell the stench”, bastards.”

Needless to say, the two ran to the infirmary, clutching their bleeding noses as two trails of blood followed their every footsteps.

Were their noses broken? Probably.

Did you care? Hell no.

Will this add on to your already long list of terrorising the students? Definitely.

And __again__, did you care? Not in the slightest.

Your chuckle, that sounded way to sinister than usual, made anyone who had the unfortunate luck of hearing it scurry away from your proud form as you made your way back home. Spirits now slightly lifted, as if a rock had been lifted from your shoulders, you sent a message to your red-haired friend (whom may be a devil in disguise) about what transpired over the past two days. Of course, you left out the fact that you were kicked to 3-E, you wanted to make an everlasting impression - much like how certain anime characters were introduced to the protagonist.

Heck, you dismissed the ‘ping’ sound that emitted from your phone as his response - not that you were actively ignoring him per say, you were just too deeply immersed on your grand entrance tomorrow.

Maybe you’ll arrive through the window…

\----- ----- -----

“We have a transfer student with us starting today.” Korosensei spoke to the class, with Bitch-sensei and Karasuma standing on one side of him, looking all professional. Wait, why __were __they here anyway? Surely a single transfer student wouldn’t make the Department of Defence be here personally. Bitch-sensei… was a teacher, so the class guessed it was only natural for her to see this mysterious new student with her own eyes. Though as to why couldn’t she wait until they had her lesson, the class didn’t know.

“Now, I’ll let her introduce herself. You cam come in now…!”

The class waited with their breaths held in. What sort of person was she? Two possibilities surfaced within each of their minds. The most probable one was that her grades slipped, resulting in the inevitable placement in the End Class. The next one was… less than ideal - it ranges from attacking a teacher, to terrorising the students to the point of no return. They didn’t really want another Karma in the class, but who knows? Maybe two devils would drastically accelerate the countdown to their teacher’s death.

All of the students had their eyes glued to the shut doors, all except for one… and as Nagisa noticed his red haired friend smirking at the open window (when was it opened anyway?), he wondered whether there was something his friend himself knew.

But the seconds ticked by, and there was no movement.

No sound of the doors sliding open. No sound of footsteps no matter how much they strained their ears. Sweat drops began collecting at their head as they wordlessly watched Korosensei dug a bigger hole for himself as he repeated for this mysterious student to appear.

“Um… m-might she… not be coming after all? Even after sensei took the liberty of announcing her arrival?”

The whole class simultaneously sweat dropped at the depressed Korosensei, who looked Christmas has been cancelled. Still, whether she ditched this specially reserved welcome for her, the fact remains that this mysterious transfer student failed to appear… until-

“No. I’m here.”

Such a voice, clear and confident, reached everyone’s ears. And their heads swivelled automatically to the direction it came from, not from the door (which was __still __closed), but from the opened window instead.

And there she was.

Balancing on the ledge with her arms crossed like a warrior Goddess, her skirt fluttered in the wind that breezed past, though it almost seemed it was her pure will that forced such clothing to move. A wooden pole was strapped behind her back, with the upper end visible yet not the lower one. Indeed, as if to contribute and solidify her ‘warrior Goddess’ imagery, the young woman leaped from the ledge and strode over to the front of the class. Her back straight, footsteps even to imply that nothing and no-one should… __would__ get in her way.

“[Name]. No need for my family name.” a chorus of a singular gasp that came from half of the class resounded when her name was uttered. “Nice to meet you all.”

It wasn’t exactly polite. No chirpy “please look after me!” or “I am in everyone’s hands.” accompanied with a bow. No. The Lone Wolf that everyone had heard of at least once, with her strength and personality that of a wild beast’s, there was no way… __no way in Hell __would she give away her respect randomly.

After a long silence that was filled with nothing but the chirps from cicadas. It was Terasaka Ryoma who managed to shake off his surprise at the warrior Goddess who was now in front of the class. With an accusing finger pointed at her, the male shouted his disbelief at her entrance as well as her weird speech pattern.

“I see no problem with the way I speak.”

“There it is again! That usage of “I”, are you crossdressing or something?!”

Before it could escalate any further, Korosensei managed to snap himself out of his initial shock and intervene. It was a good thing too, as anybody could see the sparks that flew around the glaring context between this new… girl? (she must had been female, as indicated by her wearing the school uniform with the skirt. Yet what Terasaka said had branded itself within most of the class’ minds… __was __[Name] crossdressing after all…?) And Terasaka.

“Well, and there you have it!” a yellow tentacle… hand… __thing__ began to climb, with its goal of resting on the new girl’s shoulder as a way of both officially introducing her to the class, and also establish himself as a kind teacher whom have her back.

Yet before it could even as much touch her right shoulder, she swiftly tugged out the wooden pole from her back and cut the hand with vigour and agility that the class could only watch. Yet instead of dodging the weapon (which revealed itself to be a wooden bokken), their unkillable teacher just stood there, letting the ordinary sword do its work.

It was to be expected after all. They all know only those special anti-teacher materials could and __would__ harm the octopus. It was an impressive display of power and speed, yet nothing happened. It thus resulted in the creature laugh in his weird… ‘only-I-can-laugh-like-this!” laughter as green stripes ran horizontally across the round face, each thick line separating his normal yellow colouring.

Then as if to showcase his superiority at… well, __not dying__, Korosensei opened his mouth and said in a tone that one used on a child when they got the easiest question wrong. “[Name]-chan, despite your speed and power, only those special materials would harm me. Still, there was no hesitation in the way you struck, thus I look forward in your future assassinations.”

Much to the bewilderment of the class, a smile slowly crept its way onto her face. Was there more to this showcase of power…?

Korosensei, meanwhile, ignored it.

“You can sit behind Hara Sumire.” as if on cue, a hand rose and waved from the black haired student with a kind face.

“Oh?” the smirk that appeared on her face widened, so much so that it was on par with the class teacher’s smile. “Who said that my bokken __isn’t __made out of those special materials?”

As if on cue, as if she was waiting for what would happen next, [Name] calmly strode over to her sitting place, just as Korosensei’s tentacle, the very same one that was struck with her weapon, started __melting__. Yellow mucus dripped from his wounded tentacle/hand as the green stripes disappeared. Yet even weirder still was his expression, as it was less a smirk and more of a genuine smile.

A singular thought was shared by the class of 3-E.

_ _She… wounded Korosensei?!_ _

_ _

“I knew you would have no intention of dodging that strike, Korosensei.” the girl explained, stopping right at her seat and table as she placed her bag down with more gentleness than someone who just wounded a teacher. Shame his tentacle didn’t entirely fall off though… “So let me teach you a lesson. __Sometimes, the most ordinary things will kill you slowly__.”

She pointed the weapon at Korosensei, though it was to show that the point of the bokken was replaced with a familiar green tip…

“I took the liberty of replacing one of my bokken tips with those “anti-sensei” knives. It was an excruciating trial-and-error process, but I dare say it was worth it. Completely worth it.”

The bokken didn’t move from his face.

“I’m not declaring a war on you. I will gauge your right as a __teacher __with my own eyes. And the moment when you lose that right…” the fierce wolfish glint in her eyes was replaced with something sinister… something that would certainly make someone think twice about even approaching the female. Unfortunately, Korosensei was seemingly unaffected, as the smile, much like her weapon, stayed. “__I will kill you without mercy__.”

… That __wasn’t __a declaration of war?!

Still, she propped the weapon next to her desk and sat down as if her little entrance never happened the first place.

\----- ----- -----

“That was some entrance, [Name].”

You were staring up at the blue skies, watching clouds go by and entertaining yourself with how some of the nonsensical shapes were similar to animals and the deformed silhouettes of your favourite characters, when a voice reached your ears.

“Couldn’t help it.” you didn’t even need to look at him to know whom that vice belonged to, “I wanted to make a grand entrance after all. Makes me seem someone who should __never __be angered or underestimated.”

A chuckle was heard after you said your bit. The clear laughter was comparable with wind chimes from the large house that you spent most of your childhood in. Clear, relaxing (not that such word really applied to him) and drowning out all else.

“So, what made you arrive __so gloriously__ at 3-E?” the red hair asked, sitting next to you. From the corner of your eyes, you could just make out him setting something down on the other side - his drink, no doubt.

“Beat the shit out of someone talking shit about those in 3-E. I was supposed to be suspended or even expelled, or so the rumour goes according Kat- __someone__. Apparently being kicked to 3-E is a fate worse than expulsion.”

“Oh? That sounds __just __like you!”

“Oi, is my story __that__ funny to you?”

You rose your upper body up to look at Karma who looked like he was having the time of his life. In fact, if not for you driving your bokken down on the ground between you and him, he would have laughed until one of his lungs burst. Or maybe both. And you wouldn’t stop him anyway.

As you pulled your weapon out, a soft breeze swept past you, making your short hair flow in its rhythm. You two weren’t skipping lessons… you were skipping __the school-wide assembly__ instead, and being an assembly, it wasn’t a lesson, strictly speaking. You knew you would be punished one way or another, but at the thought of those jeering eyes and mockery (those chickens were too afraid of you to be explicitly directing their bullying at you), you decided to skip out. It was a nice day too, so you weren’t really concerned.

You weren’t really close with your family members… or well, the ones that were not buried six feet under anyway. Sure they were the one that __birthed __you, yet you put up an invisible wall to prevent them from coming in. In fact, this so-called ‘punishment’ they were going to dish out was less than punishing you and more of an annoyance.

Sneaking a glance at the devil in disguise next to you (who now had his headphones in, looking as if he could care less about what was going on around him), the realisation that you never read the response he sent you yesterday dawned on you. Thus you took out your phone, and was about to tap on the little green APP with the red notification on when the person beside you interrupted.

“So, whom did you punch?” the red haired inquired.

Hmm… maybe you should answer Karma. Like really, considering that he was someone whom you would consider a ‘friend’ within a heartbeat, so you wagered that you could be truthful with him.

You also wanted to see his reaction.

“Oh, I punched the bastard son.”

“... Don’t tell me…”

“Hey, he was pissing me off, and so I punched him. It just so happens that I punched the board chairman’s one and only son, Asano Gakushu.”

“...” Karma stayed silent, his eyes set on you with an unreadable expression. You decided that you didn’t quite like it when he was silent, as you couldn’t accurately read his intentions (but really, who __could__?), thus you opened your mouth and said:

“Hmm? Wait, didn’t my soul animal- uh, human, Sakata Gintoki, say something similar?”

Needless to say, after that statement, Karma started laughing his socks off, weirdly, though he still managed to weave “sounds __just __like you!” and “you never change” in between. It was only when he stopped clutching his stomach and that the ear buds had fallen off in the process (how he managed that was beyond your knowledge) that Karma spoke again.

“You know…”

“What?”

“I __am __glad to see that you haven’t changed - along with your aggressive speech pattern. I can’t possibly lose my partner-in-crime now, could I?”

Cheeks heating up, all you could do was turn your head away, hoping to God that he wouldn’t notice the faint blush spreading across both of your cheeks.

“Shut up and go back to sleep already before I __make __you.”

* * *

****[1] ****Sakura-knockoff

[Name]’s short, messy hair with the two weird bang sticking out is said to be similar to [Princess Sakura](https://s1.zerochan.net/Shiritsu.Horitsuba.Gakuen.600.1121492.jpg) (the taller one) from Tsubasa Chronicles. <strike>Why? There’s actually a reason for that.</strike> Of course, [Name]’s hairstyle is __strikingly similar __and not exactly the same(or well, I will try) __\- __I will upload a full body picture of her when I have the time.


	3. [02] The Lone Wolf: Mid-term Exams

“Now then, shall we begin?”

Your mouth was open, and then you forcefully closed it much like a goldfish.

Your teacher, Korosensei, was standing in front of the entire class, which was usual for a teacher, and with multiple images of himself, which was, again, a rather frequent occurrence for Korosensei himself. However what made your mouth open was the fact that he had a duplicate __for each 3-E member__. You had briefly wondered how long could he keep up with this extreme new duplicate sport that he just made up, thus you played along.

Besides, mid-term exams were fast approaching. And that was the reason why the teacher was doing such a mentally and physically challengingly job of personally (wait, __were __his duplicates- oh, never mind) teaching the area that each student was lacking in.

“Why the heck is mine the only “Naruto” one?!” to your right, even further beside Karma, Terasaka shouted out, banging the table.

“Terasaka-kun is a special curriculum. You are weak in multiple subjects. After all.”

“Yeah, person on a special curriculum.” you couldn’t help but poke fun at him, a smug smile appearing on your face, “stop abusing the poor table and concentrate on your academics. Whoops, sorry, you don’t have any room left in your brain because it’s so full of __muscles__.”

“Why you-”

“Now, now, [Name]-chan.” the Korosensei duplicate in front of you, who was wearing a white headband with “social studies” written in, brought your attention back again. Holding the booklet that details what could be on the exam, the octopus laughed before continuing, “Since your marks are consistent throughout, we’ll be going over the more advanced problems.”

You sighed. True, your marks were consistent, but that doesn’t mean you particularly enjoy studying. You were pretty good at memorising things, something that was surely the produce of you watching too many anime to count, but all you wanted to do was play the new Fire Emblem game… you wondered how the red lord’s route will end.

Still, knowing the school, they will play dirty, thus you first rolled up your sleeves, then bit back your snark, gritted your teeth, and started earnestly listen to Korosensei explanations. Although his face quickly… morphed? Yeah, let’s go with “morphed” to one side, as if avoiding a death blow, right when he was in the middle of a sentence. Such a quick change made you choke on your own saliva, but it was better than others who yelped out in surprise… only slightly better anyway.

“Please don’t try to assassinate me all of a sudden, Karma-kun!” Korosensei shouted out over the commotion, though how he managed to evade __all __of the red haired attacks was beyond your understanding- oh wait, he was more of an alien creature thing than human, so there were things that only this weird hybrid could do. “When I dodge, it affects all of my after images, you know!”

“I’m cheering you on, Karma.” you couldn’t help but side with the devil in disguise, as he continued to jab the plastic knife without a care in the world. “Whoops, go left next time- no, right now, right, right! No… Korosensei’s reflexes are simply too fast…”

The lesson continued on without Karma landing a single hit on Korosensei, yet ultimately, the yellow octopus (yeah, you were going to refer to him as either an “octopus” or “squid” from now on, watching how he avoided the attacks of Karma with as much agility as a marine mammal in water) had all of his squishy tentacles intact. Sadly.

“Oi, Lone Wolf.”

You looked at the direction of a stupidly brave person for calling out your name. And to nobody’s surprise (as you were chilling out in a rather secluded area), you met eye-to eye with the class bully, Terasaka. Well, when I say “eye-to-eye”, what I really meant was “eye-to-chest” because of your difference in heights...

But the class bully wasn’t alone. Along with him followed two others, both male, and both looking more uncomfortable than their leader. You didn’t know whether they were really passive-aggressively roped into this, or because your widely feared reputation, but you wagered it was most likely a combination of the two.

“You must be really be brave to approach me.” you said, standing your ground with confidence excluding your entire body despite the fact that if there was to be a fight, it would be a three-on-one. “__Stupidly brave__.”

Your focus settled on his two ‘minions’, ignoring the man who had visible veins after you insulted him. Muramatsu Takuya and Yoshida Taisei, you remembered from the class database that you <strike>stole</strike> took, while their faces turned from uncomfortable to downright frightened after the insult, you could tell that when ordered to, they would carry out Terasaka’s plans in a heartbeat.

Though against you? You doubt it.

Terasaka took an opportunity to grab you when you were analysing his two friends (were they his friends though…? Or were they really his minions?), though you easily evaded his initial strike, making the veins budge out dangerously so that you wondered if it was possible for him to cut a major vein or something if he got a paper cut. The large male followed up by driving a fist into your field of vision, but you anticipated that strike anyway by watching him like a hawk. You ducked down, making Terasaka’s fist meet nothing but air, before putting your palms down, wanting to target his legs. Your kick proved successful, as he landed on his front.

You stood up, dusted your uniform, and sent him a glare.

“Consider this payback for dragging Nagisa into your pathetic schemes.”

Muramatsu and Yoshida made no movement, heck, they didn’t even move when you passed through the gap between them.

\----- ----- -----

_ _“Consider this payback for dragging Nagisa into your pathetic schemes.”_ _

_ _

It was a statement that she spat out, __that__, Terasaka could work out in his sleep, but to him, it was a wolf’s howl that made ice crack.

Pathetic.

That little girl made __him__, of all people, face-plant the ground?! That little girl who didn’t even reach his shoulders?!

(To be honest, she had muscles under her clothing - Terasaka could see that because her sleeves were rolled up. Still, that did nothing to quench the angry fire within.)

Pathetic. Utterly, pathetic.

Sure, Terasaka knew of the infamous rumour of a lone wolf that prowls around the school grounds, looking for her next prey as her howl would strike fear and admiration down anyone’s backs, but he totally underestimated her capabilities. The first time he saw her was around two years ago, when she was beating some students using the wooden sword without mercy. The E student would never have imagined that he would be sitting in the same class as __her__.

Those eyes… those eyes were of the exact same as those of a wild wilderbeast’s… those hungry, sharp eyes that masked her uncontrollable anger under a thin ice. To be honest, he nearly got lost in them.. they weren’t mesmerising - far from it - yet there was __something __about those [eye colour] irises that made his movements slower… __was __this something that prey felt when they were seized up by a predator?

“I’ll show her who’s really pathetic.” the silent mummer held nothing but a promise, as the male pulled himself up.

\----- ----- -----

You expected Nagisa inside the old school building, somehow, and you expected the teachers discussing things far from within ear shots of the students (after all, if was what they normally do at break). What you __didn’t __expect was for the chairman of Kunugigaoka, Asano Gakuhou, to be personally here… and what you __definitely didn’t expect __was for the chairman himself to speak of one particular event that transpired yesterday.

““A student from Class E glared ferociously at one of mine.” And on top of that, threatened to “kill him”.”

What did you miss?! Now you wondered whether it was such a good idea to skip out on assembly when you could witness Nagisa making Class D students piss their trousers.

Speaking of the blue haired boy, he looked like he was right in an “oh crap” moment that you had to go help him snap out of it. It worked, but at the expense of a gasp that you had to subdue it by putting your hand over his mouth.

… You sincerely hoped that nobody would see you like this. With the way you were trying to prevent him from making a sound, you had to place yourself quite close to him, which… would most likely create misunderstandings that would result in a few broken fingers at best.

Especially __not __a person by the name of Akabane Karma.

But back to Gakuho, who explained that while such an expression was expected for someone who were __carrying out assassinations __(which, now that you remembered, must had sounded so bad if an outsider were to listening in), those in E class defying others were a massive problem.

In other words, he wants everything to stay the same. Where Class E would be bullied, mocked, spat on, all that and everything else.

To end it, you saw the chairman threw some kind of wire puzzle at Korosensei, wanting the octopus to solve it in one second. You knew your teacher’s speed was something else, but solving a puzzle in __a second__?! That was impossible.

Thus to nobody’s surprise, he ended up tangling himself all over.

“In this world… there are problems which cannot be solved through speed.”

As soon as you heard the door open, you promptly let go of your friend - which the timing couldn’t have been more precise, as Gakushou stepped out. Offering a chilling smile that forced Nagisa to remember that he was in the __End Class__, his cheery tone masked a hidden underworld… a secret repulsing image that you had to grit your teeth from snapping.

“Hey there! I’m looking forward to the midterm exams. ****Do your best****!”

As soon as he faced the corridor, the smile disappeared, leaving no trace of it remaining.

The bastard was rubbing salt onto the wound, and he knew exactly what he was doing. You would had loved to give him a piece of your mind (um, since you were a __wolf__, it would be “giving him a piece of your bite”), yet you couldn’t.

You were like Nagisa. Paralysed and unable to offer any kind of words, let alone actions.

_ _Ah… grandmother… brother dearest. _ _

You didn’t really know whether if he brought up the darkest moments stored in the deepest crevices of your memories, or your family members.

And you didn’t want to know.

\----- ----- -----

The next day, you were greeted with the sight of countless Korosensei**_**_s_**_**. Seems like yesterday’s events motivated him to no end - he was more passionate than the entirety of 3-E put together about this exam. Though he tried his best to keep up, the end result only tired him out than really doing anything to help his students study. You were contemplating if it was possible for him to actually push himself to his limits until the end of the day, but when your classmates said that it was easier to assassinate him than to get good grades, the whole atmosphere changed in an instant.

_ _N-nobody felt this drastic change?! Hey, I thought you were all assassins!_ _

Still, your curiosity won the battle with your intuition, thus you followed the yellow octopus out to the field, where weeds were in abundance. Your confusion intensified when he began moving the goalposts to leave the area clean of obstacles.

_ _Wait… don’t tell me he’s going to uproot the entire field to demonstrate his abnormal strength and agility?_ _

_ _

_ _… If so, what a fucking show off._ _

_ _

“Irina-sensei, I have a question for you, as a professional assassin.” Korosensei pointed at the blond teacher, and while she voiced out her confusion, she nodded at his strange request anyway. “Whenever you are on the job… do you only have one plan prepared?”

“... No. Just as you’d expect, rather than one preferred plan, it’s better to have a few possible routes. For assassins, it’s part of the basics… to construct thorough backup plans in advance, in case unforeseen circumstances should arise. One of the biggest operations I took part in had me carry out a total of six plans, with two of them constructed right on the spot.”

You wondered what operation __that __was, for the professional assassin to have to carry out so many plans, but your attention was cut short when Karasuma (__… not as cool as Not-Kurama but his name isn’t too bad either__) explained how although the first strike was important, what one does in the second and third one will reveal the outcome of the match.

You filed his advice away in your mind.

“What are you getting at…”

“Just as the teachers have said.” Korosensei… started spinning. You didn’t anticipate this, which proved just how hard it was to read your teacher, thus you had to cover your eyes with your arms to void getting anything potentially dangerous in them. “If your next move is assured, you can become an assassin full of self-confidence. And what about you? Thinking “we’ll be fine, since we have assassination”… you’ve lowered your studying goals.”

You wanted to shout “Korosensei, the school __will __play dirty to keep us at the lowest of the low!” yet you couldn’t, for you didn’t think he would hear it over the top of… wait, was that a __tornado__?!

“... What if I were to flee from this classroom? What if another assassin killed me before you could?”

Was it you or did you think that the tornado got stronger? Did Korosensei seriously projected all of his anger onto his skills?

“Having lost the assassination you think of as a contingency plan, you would be left with only your sense of inferiority as Class E. Here is some advice from Sensei… to all of you, who are so insecure.”

How he managed to projectile his voice over the sound of the wind so that every syllable was heard loud and clear, was beyond your understanding. Plot armour perhaps? But your life isn’t an anime or a story… well, it __is __but you don’t know that- no, wait, you __do__, sometimes anyway.

Still, the undeniable fact remains that Korosensei’s statement were implanted deeply in everybody’s minds after this.

“****Those who do not possess a second weapon… are not qualified to call themselves assassins!****”

Among the dust, the lone victor of an inhuman figure emerged.

“... There were many weeds and much uneven ground on the school campus. I have cleaned it up a bit.”

True to his word, not a single weed, plant or bumps remain in the space that was the old campus’s ground. Heck, he even went out of his way of paving a sort of running track - which just proved his ability and how serious he was about his promises. Along with them, the real possibility of him destroying the Earth… even you had to gulp down a shiver… Karasuma wasn’t joking around when he stated, in his professional voice that gave nothing away - not even emotions, the creature __will __destroy this plant in the blink of an eye.

And as if to contribute to the tense atmosphere, Korosensei admitted that he really was capable of erasing the Earth, and if he found that there was no true assassins in this class, he will erase all of you, along with the run-down school, before he destroys the Earth.

Scary.

Turning to look at the teachers, even they seem unnerved by this pure display of power. __Crap. __You privately thought, doubt began setting in your mind. __If __those two __looks surprised, then there was no way an assassin, no matter how professional or violent, could truly kill this super-creature.__

_ _

Yet when your eyes searched for a certain red haired (… to be honest he was the __only __one with red for hair colour here), they landed on his easy-going form in front of a tree, looking although surprised, he didn’t seem to be that much bothered.

Or well, that was what you had got from his body language with one of his hand in his pockets and the other scratching the back of his neck. All in all, Karma looked as if he was listening to a boring lecture filled with say, five seconds of information that was worth something interesting to him.

To prove yourselves to be worthy of assassinating him, Korosensei had the goal of making each and every one of you be placed in the top 50.

__Top 50, huh? __Gone were your worries, instead fuelled by an controllable thirst of biting down the juicy flesh of your prey - which was the exam tomorrow. __Guess it can’t be helped. I’ve got to get serious. __And as if to echo your thought process, you rolled up your sleeves, just like yesterday.

_ _

Despite your wild looks and whatnot, you really __were __serious about your studied. Surprised? Me too.

** **“You shut up.”** **

** **

\----- ----- -----

** **

It was easy.

Question after question, the fish monsters proved to be simple fishes that you easily cut open with your knife, with your lower arm visible as the uniform sleeves were up, you offered anybody present a sneak view of the muscles that you had developed (and were still developing) because of the excessive kendo practise. To sum it up, whether it was maths, English, Japanese, or Social Studies, you absolutely maimed them all. Sure, there were stumbles on the way, and questions that got into your head, but you were sure you would score in the high eighties if they continued at this level. Heck, you were confident that you would have grabbed several nineties as well.

Then came the later questions.

English was easy because of your heritage, yet every other exams? Well, you __just caught __a glimpse of the finish goal before the floor gave away right beneath your feet.

__Dark… __it was dark. You felt something scuttle past your feet, and while you were __so glad __your feet were protected by layers of socks and shoes, you couldn’t help but shiver.

It was too dark. You couldn’t see, you couldn’t think… you didn’t know if the way you ran aimlessly was even the way to get out of this hell hole.

_ _“Hello, child.”_ _

_ _

It was the voice that belonged to the monster under your bed.

_ _“Hello you disposable, ugly, neglected child. Shall I educate you?”_ _

_ _

You would very much like to wake up now, thanks!

\---- ----- -----

Long story short, they played dirty. The bastards changed the questions days before the exam, and while the main school were given a lecture instructed by the chairman himself, your class wasn’t so lucky. Needless to say, it resulted in Korosensei stubbornly facing the blackboard, absolutely refusing to turn around and face everyone.

… No, wait. A stray knife that was aimed at his yellow head made him turn to the class forcefully. To nobody’s surprise, it was Karma who had thrown it, and confidently threw his exam results, causing Korosensei to gasp.

They were all high nineties, with mathematics in full marks.

You looked down at your own results, the red marks that reflected all of your mark work glaring up at you much like the traffic lights that you crossed more times than you could count on the way (and back) to school. You sighed, your results were far from Karma’s, yet you did manage to go beyond fifty.

_ _Mathematics: 89%_ _

_ _English: 95%_ _

_ _Social Studies: 81%_ _

_ _Science: 88%_ _

_ _Japanese: 89%_ _

_ _

“When it comes down to it, aren’t you just afraid of being killed?”

_ _

You took that as a sign of revealing your precious results to the class. Thus you approached the shocked Korosensei and slammed down your results upon the table with a wolfish grin, befitting your nickname. “You’re right that my marks are consistent, and while I’m not in the top ten, I __am __in the top fifty. It __is __what you wanted, isn’t it?”

He was flabbergasted. It was such a sight that you contemplated snapping a photo.

_ _

Of course, such results meant that both of you could be lifted into Class D (or even beyond), but neither of you were intent on leaving the class - such a thought never even crossed your mind! You still voiced it out loud nevertheless.

“Or… are you frightened at the thought of all of us coming after your yellow head?”

As if on cue, the whole class started mocking him, calling him out for being a scaredy cat (um, he was an octopus-squid hybrid so he would be a scaredy octopus?), which in turn made Korosensei’s guilt swiftly turn into anger. His whole face turned into a bright shade of red that could only be matched by the male with the red hair beside you (who sent you an annoying smirk. An annoyingly __handsome __smirk) as your teacher shouted out:

“There is no way I will run away! I’ll pay you all back double at the end-of-term exams as revenge!”

Tentacles wriggling about, your teacher did look like an octopus in water. Still, you couldn’t help but feel your spirits lift higher, the monster in the form of a human that plagued your nightmares already long forgotten by the time you walked down the mountain.


	4. [03] The Lone Wolf: Off to Kyoto

Normally, you would find yourself sitting alone on a coach/train trip because of your reputation, which was perfectly fine because it was actually a good and comfortable thing that people made it sound as you get to have a _whole seat_ just for you. Two if you were lucky.

But Class E didn’t get the memo about your much feared reputation, because everyone wanted to include you in their activities, weirdly enough. You didn’t even stay a whole, whooping month! Yet still, you found yourself being <strike>forced</strike> put in Nagisa’s group, courtesy of Karma as apparently he wanted you to be tagged alongside him. It would be friendly, and dare you think it, __rather romantic__ if not for the fact that he had devil horns poking out of his head… who knew what his goal of __really __including you in his group was.

_ _Good grief._ _

Still, being in a group wasn’t too bad. Especially not when they consisted of Nagisa, Sugino, Kayano, Okuda and the class beauty (who shone so bright that she completely outmatched you by simply standing next to you) Kanzaki.

… And then came the seating plans.

Class E had to travel second class, separate from the snobbish main school students. That, you weren’t bothered by, but what you __were __was the fact that you had to begrudgingly give up half of what was a __very good__ row of seat (though there were only two) to Karma. Your irritation only increased ten-fold with the way he was abusing you by pressing his whole body so that you were squished to the window, more of less.

To make matters worse, you were playing cards, and Karma was making no intention of even sneaking a glance at the cards in your hand. His attention was fully set on making you as uncomfortable as possible.

Bitch. No wait, you take that back, that was Bitch-sensei’s name.

Bastard-

“WhAt THe FuCk?!”

You coughed out, hacking and sputtering as you chocked on your own saliva… __yet again__ at the downright terrifying image of an octopus hybrid stuck onto the window from the other side. And because of Karma squishing your whole body, you got a good look at the monster that was straight out of a horror movie. Well, not so much horror but more sci-fy.

Turns out Korosensei missed the train by buying sweets instead. And to conceal himself, he camouflaged his… um, __flesh__ so that to an outsider, it would seem only his teacher’s robes and backpack (which was… the size of Mt Fuji) was stuck to the train. You didn’t know how that seemed any better than revealing himself in his mind, but you were too focused on __not dying __at the time to voice it out.

When the three girls excused themselves to buy drinks after you hauled Korosensei into the train, you took that opportunity to escape the __Pressure of Death__. But you didn’t… as you couldn’t even struggle out of the space that you were confined in.

“Lone Wolf!”

Oh great, as if this day couldn’t get any worse.

“The fuck do __you __want?!”

Terasaka’s scowl turned into a mocking smirk at the sight of you.

“What’s wrong? Couldn’t move now that your keeper had kept you in your cage?”

“Oh yeah? Wanna come closer so I can bite your face off?”

He was about to respond, but then Karma had to whisper something into his ear (how he did that while restraining your whole body to the window was beyond your understanding) and, if it was possible, the smirk spread across Terasaka’s face even further. You suddenly had two revalations there and then:

One, you had a bad feeling… a __very __bad feeling about this.

Two, __just whose side were __you __on, Akabane Karma?!__

“Nah, I’m not into you. Heard you choked though, perhaps you’ll choke on Akabane and die a very excruciating death.”

… Yep, this had the name __“Akabane Karma” __written all over it. Terasaka’s brain couldn’t even understand the term “excruciating” for the life of him, let along use it!

Face able to fry an egg on, your cheeks were the same colour as Karma’s hair as you sprang into action. It was too bad that you were too engrossed on beating an inch out of Terasaka’s life (Korosensei, who had concealed himself so he looked like a cosplayer in a full body costume, had to use his tentacles to stop you from committing homicide by your fists) to notice the faint blush on the mastermind’s face.

And on that day, the whole class found out just how terrifying a wolf could be when she was hell bent on tearing the flesh off her prey.

\----- ----- -----

“But y’know,” Sugino admitted, as your group walked around Kyoto, “once we’d gotten to Kyoto, I forgot all about the assassination. I mean, it’s such great scenery. Like a place completely unrelated to assassinations and stuff like that.”

“In reality, it’s the complete opposite, Sugino.”

“Nagisa’s right.” you couldn’t help but chip in, knowing some assassinations that happened in Kyoto because of… um, the shows that you watched. Yeah, let’s just go with that. “Sakamoto Ryoma was assassinated here, and near here, a temple named “Honnou-Ji” was where Oda Nobunaga, my w- uh, __he__ was forced to commit seppuku. Though the incident only occurred because his retainer set fire on the temple. Thus it __could __be seen as assassination if you think about it.”

By the time your group reached some kind of back alleyway hidden deep in the district, your mind had already played the newest (and __last__… boo-hoo) GudaGuda theme song three times. You were mentally switching track to Gintama’s much loved ‘Some Like it Hot’ (or rather, ‘Samurai Heart’) when a sudden chill went down your body.

_ _This… I’m- no, we’re being watched?!_ _

_ _

“Hey… guys.” the group of six turned to you in confusion, stopping in their tracks with each of them similar to a deer caught in headlights. “It might just be me… but __prepare for battle__.”

“It really is just perfect.” no sooner had you uttered the warning out, and unfamiliar voice echoed in the narrow alleyway. “Now why would you walk in an area like this, where abduction is a piece of cake~”

In came three high school thugs waltzing in, looking as if they owned the place.

“... What’s up gents? Well, you don’t seem to be here for sightseeing.” though Karma’s remark was casual as ever, his stance meant he was more than ready for a thrashing if push came to shove.

“All you boys have to do is leave the women here and go home.”

But Karma had grabbed his face as soon as he had finished, and swiftly bashed the back of his head on a pole, effectively knocking the first thug out not even three seconds when the battle started.

“See Nagisa-kun? If there aren’t any witnesses, then there’s no problem even I fight.”

“You’re all talk and a tiny action.” you shouted, kneeling the second thug in the chest after dodging his initial strike. Seriously, his method was similar to Terasaka… “Hey what’s this deja vu I’m feeling…?”

“Hmm? Oh, you’re right [Name]. This is similar to the time we first met.”

“True, but… __you don’t have to follow the script of what had happened letter by letter and come help me already__!”

He chuckled, something that made you be filled with confidence. Though you couldn’t decipher how his mere laughter could impact your mental state like that, you noted that… it wasn’t so bad. With the situation at hand, you let him off lightly, only mumbling a “good grief, Karma” under your breath as your fist met the face of a different thug.

It was too bad that the person you were exasperated with was completely ignorant towards the highschooler who had prepared to land a blow to the back of his head.

So of course, you had to do what a good friend (and like, every single fictional character at least once in their lives) had to do. Which was to take the hit for him.

__Crap… this isn’t good… __you thought to yourself. Wait, when did you land on the ground anyway? You tried to focus, but the black spots that danced in your vision made it difficult. __Can’t believe… I’m going down by a mere bat.__

_ _

You heard another thud, but you didn’t know who was down.

It wasn’t long until you lost consciousness all together.

\----- ----- -----

_ _“Hey, you’re spacing out again.”_ _

_ _

__At first, you didn’t notice the figure sitting along the thick branches of the willow tree, as it was hidden within the green leaves that dangled all over, cascading over his body like magnificent fine cloths… or well, not exactly __fine cloth __but more like… furry scarves.__

_ _

__Your eyes met his face. His features were older than yours, but only by a few years, thus it wasn’t as defined and sharp as he wanted to be. Besides, you were only five at the time, making the male eight. Still, you envied his age, and gender… and everything about him that made him, __him.

_ _He was eating peanuts again. Opening the hard shell outside to pop the brown snack in his mouth, completely disregarding how he was dirtying the expensive clothing that he had on. Wait, seeing him so high up (he wasn’t really high, but then again, to the five year old you, the position he was in really reached the Heavens), you were sure that he had already dirtied his attire._ _

_ _

_ _“Grandmother would yell, nii-san.”_ _

_ _

_ _“Let her.” a shrug. Then a laughter that showed just how much he cared about your grandmother’s lectures. “I don’t really care either way. Let me climb and run around instead of being cooped up in here!”_ _

_ _

_ _You didn’t respond._ _

_ _

__After all, Grandmother never lectured you, thus you would be happy- __should __be on cloud nine. But then again, she never brushed your hair, read you bedtime stories, fed you the steamy bowl of rice that your brother loved - not as much as peanuts. She never even touched you gently… no hugs, no patting your head, no complimenting you.__

_ _

_ _Sometimes you wondered if you were a ghost, unable to pass on._ _

_ _

_ _“... Do you hate me?”_ _

_ _

__You had to strain your ears to hear his quiet confession. So quiet, so small, so __frightened __as if he was trying to confess a sin in the altar of God. But what eight year old would know __what __to confess?__

_ _

_ _“No.”_ _

_ _

_ _“... Do you accept me?”_ _

_ _

_ _The clinging of bells filled the silence between you two, as the summer that swept over Japan did nothing to stop the heatwave that it brought its citizens. You nearly got lost in the crispy sound, but remembering that you still hadn’t answered his question (… was it a confession instead?), you opened your mouth and replied in a clear, crystal tone._ _

_ _

_ _“I don’t.”_ _

_ _

_ _The sound of a clean clang, the feel of the wind made your [hair colour] hair flutter about. Those elegant strands reached your waist, and along with it, the dress that you had on - which seemed so elegant and soft that it would surely be worth at least a week’s wages of an average salary-man. It was these points, along with using (strictly speaking) a particular “I” that was used by both male and female_ _ ** _ ** _[1]_ ** _ ** _ _, that contributed to your birth gender…_ _

_ _

_ _You were so different, so vastly different, as a child._ _

_ _

_ _\----- ----- -----_ _

_ _

It was dark.

And not in a “oh, it’ll be easier to sleep” dark, but a “holy shit is that a fucking demon there?!” dark. A darkness that would make your mind play games, whether it be conjuring these devils that plagued sleepless nights, or the feeling that you were being watched.

_ _Fuck._ _

_ _

It was an understatement.

You tried to move your limbs - any of them, yet they were unable to comply. The more you struggled, the more you realise that you were bond in ropes.

Were you scared? Not at all - honest! But the faint throb on your head was giving you a killer headache as time dragged on. Your memories were blurry, but at least you remember your name. What __was __the last thing you could recollect?

Your mind drifted to the vibrant colour of red. Red like the sunset, painting the sky in a fiery orange and yellow hue that burnt across the skies. Red like the lipstick that Bitch-sensei sometimes puts on, as she recounts another story which shouldn’t even be whispered among fifteen year olds. Red like the devil, as he tempts you down a sinful path, where salvation was a pipe dream.

Red… like the hair on his head.

Oh yeah, you took the hit that was aimed at Karma, didn’t you? Poor, silly [Name]. Wanting to be a hero deep down, putting a growling wolf’s snarl as she pushed everyone away despite everything. Ah well, not there there was anyone to witness you right now… you were alone. Completely, indisputably, alone.

_ _Hey, it’s my childhood all over again._ _

_ _

You didn’t know whether that was a joke, or a façade of a joke that you desperately tried to calm your frantically beating heart.

But luckily (or unluckily), the pain overrode every other feeling pretty soon, and you were back in the floating abyss of darkness, unable to sense the outside world.

\----- ----- -----

“... Scream… cry… no one will come.”

Great, you were beginning to awake. You didn’t want to face the world, as your blood soaked face will most definitely ruin your eyesight, as well as cause an incoming migraine if you do any extreme movement.

But hey ho, you were kidnapped, so what could you do anyway?

“We’re gonna play… big audience… calling some buddies… photoshoot…. real good time… messing shit up.” your mind was still foggy, and you could only decipher several incomplete sentences. You knew you were not the only one kidnapped, as it sounds as if the perpetrator was talking to someone else.

As time ticked by, your mind cleared up enough to hear two voices. Two __female __voices. And searching your memories before you were knocked out, you suddenly remembered that the no-good thugs were after the women in your group. You couldn’t hear Okuda, thus you concluded that she must had been safe.

The voices were talking about a photograph. Weird. You had expected them to cry and beg, but none of that happened, making you mentally give kudos to the brave souls who were trapped alongside you.

Now that your mind was more or less sixty percent clear, you tried the ropes that were wrapped around your body. Sure, they were tight to prevent people from breaking free, but the knot was __atrociously __done. You could have escape it in... under one minute when you were a full health, but with your mind still working its cogs, or it was starting as slowly as Windows 97, you played it safe.

Besides, you wanted to keep this secret just between you and… well, yourself only.

One of them (that you later realised belonged to Kanzaki) explained about having strict parents, whom disregarded everything apart from her academic skills, thus she wanted to go somewhere where she could ‘let her hair down’ and forget about everything.

Hey, your mind was still not a hundred percent clear, so give yourself some credit for deciphering the overall story!

Still, her situation was similar to yours, though your caretaker was completely engrossed in your older brother instead to bat an eyelash at you.

To her, nothing you did ever mattered.

To her, you might as well be a speck of dust that tainted the lush, Japanese house.

__Hey, Grandmother, then why the __fuck __was I born then?__

_ _

It was a question you continuously asked yourself.

A sudden slap, as if something hit something - hard. The sudden yelp and a ‘thud’ hat followed made you realise the thug (or one of them) must had hit one of the victims. Judging by her high pitched voice, it must had belonged to Kayano.

_ _Fuck._ _

_ _

Did you want to do something? Total understatement. You wanted to grab a bat (or anything that you can get your hands on, really) and start beating the ever-loving shit out of them… but at the same time, you really didn’t want to-

“When we return to Tokyo, let’s all play together again. All while looking at commemorative photos of our fun school trip…” one of the high schoolers with the most authoritativeness voice spat out. “Now… I’ll get started on __that one __over there. Sleeping away without a care in the world.”

“... Disgusting…”

“What?!”

_ _Closer… a little bit more…_ _

_ _

“Did you say something, bitch?!”

_ _Now._ _

_ _

You flung your leg up as hard and swift as you could. The sound of __something breaking __filled the otherwise silent room filled you with a sense of pride. Cracking open your eyes little by little, you were greeted with the sight of a bloody mess.

Well, it wasn’t something straight out of a gory movie, but the thug’s face was covered in a layer of crimson - much like your own. If you had to guess, you had broken his nose, and maybe his jaw as well.

“Absolutely disgusting.” the ropes loosened and dropped around you. Massaging your wrists, you glared at everyone present in the room. Though your chances of winning were slim, you were not going to go down without a fight.

_ _Crap… it’s taking all my energy to keep my eyes open._ _

_ _

“How?!” the spluttered out. Bits of spit and blood flying out of this mouth.

“Let’s just say… I am __very __good at untying ropes.” you stood your ground, determined to not let the blurring of what you could see get to you. It was a sight to behold really, a lone human standing their ground against all odds just to protect their friends. But then this was [Surname] [Name], the one whom had a reputation so bad, so terrifying that the rumours of her abandoning everyone and anyone was popular enough to spiral off several smaller rumours- “Unfortunately, I simply __cannot __let you lay a finger on them.”

Whoops, I take that back.

“[Surname]-san…” was that Kanzaki or Kayano? You couldn’t differentiate from the tone of the voice- wait, that was… bad. Very bad, and dangerous. How will you- how __could __you protect anyone else when you couldn’t even tell their voices apart?! “Don’t worry about us-”

But you cut her off immediately.

“I can’t lie still when I see people that irritate me. Now, all I wanted to do was to beat the ever-loving shit out of them.” you took a deep breath, wondering if you will see your father again before any of your immediate family members.

Body positioned in a fighting stance, you glared venomously at those that stood before you. Bearing your fangs into a snarl, your breath uneven, you still tried to hold your ground nonetheless.

“Now come!”

\----- ----- -----

Kanzaki Yukiko was scared of the one whom was named [Surname] [Name].

No wait, that was an understatement.

She was __paralysed with fear__.

… No, all right, __that __was an overstatement.

Truth was, Kanzaki was scared of the wolf that preys on anyone and anything that dares to cross paths with her. To say she was a mindless creature knowing nothing but a killing instinct was harsher than what was really true… but still, there was no denying the fact that the name sent a chill down the class beauty’s spine whenever it was mentioned.

Now though, as she sat there, tied up and being plagued with the idea of what the near future holds for her, she was overcame with a sudden feeling of… what?

Staring at the broad back which was wider than any of the females she personally knew, the black haired girl couldn’t tear her eyes away from the Lone Wolf’s swaying form (oh Gods she was __swaying__, yet she __still __wants to protect them?). From the moment the wolf entered the class, Kanzaki had kept her distance - not so much that it would make the other suspicious - as she just… she just was too intimidated by this predator, much like how rabbits freeze up under the glare of a larger animal.

A prey just can’t compare to a predator.

But now… seeing the Lone Wolf struggling to retain her focus, swaying slightly despite there not being anything that would make a person wobble, made Kanzaki feel… rather guilty. She wondered if the one in front of her is less than a wolf and more of a person.

__“Unfortunately, I simply __cannot__ let you lay a finger on them.”__

_ _[Surname]-san…_ _

_ _

She really __was __like a predator, no wonder she got the ‘wolf’ as her nickname. Still, this wolf that was in front of them was comforting, Kanzaki didn’t even feel a hint of being intimidated in her presence, and although it didn’t really lift the weight in her chest that much, Kanzaki had noticed that she stopped trembling. The wolf’s bloodlust was strong… strong enough to make anyone that dared to oppose her flinch, and rethink about their decision to fight.

Which, judging by the uncertain expressions that most of the highschoolers that kidnapped the three were wearing, was working.

Staring at the broad back of the Lone Wolf- no, of __[Surname] [Name] __with an open mouth, Kanzaki was finally able to pinpoint what she was feeling.

Admiration.

She never would have thought the day would come when she would admire the short haired warrior Goddess.

And with that thought in mind, her face felt a little hotter as another thought intruded within her mind:

_ _She wouldn’t have minded being protected like this._ _

\----- ----- -----

_ _

The door swung open, and on instinct, your head swiftly swirled to the side, though it shot a pain up your brain as you inwardly cried out to __never __do that again. You had heard something about their photographers being invited here, and with a sinking feeling, you realised you would have little chance of truly getting out unharmed if they added a couple more people.

“Bitch, you’re done for! Our photographers have arrived.” the man that you broke his nose managed to gurgle through the blood. While many of his pronunciations were hard to decipher, you still got the overall gist of what he was trying to get through. You scolded yourself for not exerting more strength.

__Were __you weaker than you have liked? No, no way.

However, luck was on your side today, as someone was holding a larger person by the scruff of his neck. Through your limited vision, you noticed that the one who was captured stayed still, as if he was unable to move.

And then, another familiar voice read out several sets of instructions straight out from a massive book which had the thickness of a small child. Your mind was switching on and off, but you got the overall gist of what it was about… the instructions detailed on how to rescue kidnapped classmates. Such book didn’t exist in your memories, unless if it was the one that Korosensei suggested everyone to bring at least one with them.

A book that thick and big (it was larger than your biceps - which was developed/developing with more muscles because of your training) must had detailed everything available to humans. Were you surprised? Definitely. Yet at the same time, definitely not.

_ _Nagisa. Then that means…._ _

_ _

Damn - you really should have __not __left that book at the hotel.

You heard another door open.

Swaying dangerously, you thought about sitting or lying down, but who were __you __kidding… you were worried that if you let yourself rest, then you would be knocked out for the remainder of the day - maybe the next as well.

_ _Crap… there definitely is quite a commotion happening._ _

_ _

You wanted to watch. You want to know what was happening. You __need to__.

_ _

But you were tired. And in pain. And want to sleep.

You looked up, just barely, and saw… yellow. Well, that must had been your teacher then… you didn’t know anyone else who had yellow coloured skin - like, an ugly, comic yellow - heck, you don’t think anyone __have __that brightly coloured skin. Still, since Korosensei was here, that means you can rest well. With that thought in mind, your eyes rolled up, up, and up… until there was nothing but the darkness that engulfed you.

But strangely, it wasn’t cold, nor hard.

Instead, it was warm and comforting, as if you were being embraced by a cocoon of blankets.

_ _

* * *

_ _

_ _

****[1] ****Usage of “I”

As you may or may not noticed, [Name] uses an aggressive speech pattern. She uses the masculine ****“ore” ****instead of the ‘usual’ ****“watashi” ****to refer to herself. Which is weird, and downright rude in Japan.


	5. [04] The Lone Wolf: Earsdropping is Bad

It was warm.

Funny thing about the human brain is that while it is said to be the most complex and powerful piece of thing which is able to process million small bits of data at once, but when a human has, say… __fainted__, they would have little to no recollection of what took place. There might be flashes, along with voices that were jumbled and distorted (making the whole memory something akin to a virus-inflected disk), that they could see.

Still, the fact remains that one has little chance of deciphering what had happened.

Which was your situation right now.

You couldn’t feel anything. No, wait, that wasn’t entirely true, as you definitely remember feeling rather warm. After all, you fainted and collapsing straight onto the ground was meant to be cold and hard… so much so that you probably would have back pains.

But it wasn’t.

It was warm. The feel of something __familiar__ filled every one of your senses.

Distorted voiced rang this way and that.

“... be fine… -sensei.”

Ah, that must had been a student then.

“... ‘er to me… -kun.”

That must had been Korosensei.

You don’t remember what had happened after that.

Another funny thing about fainting is that people would often dream about their past. Be it having a delicious ice-cream under the blazing Sun when they were at an age that the competition of collecting insects was what had really worried them, to remembering the first date that they had when they were in high school - or at the very least, in the last year of middle school.

… Or maybe that only applies to manga and anime - fictional stories that were the fruition of people’s imaginations. Too bad you weren’t in one.

Or maybe you were. Because you remembered your father.

\----- ----- -----

_ _“Hey, I’ll be gone for a while, so look after your sister, all right?” you watched, indifferently might I add, as the man leaned down and ruffled the boy’s hair._ _

_ _

_ _“Stop doing that, father.”_ _

_ _

__“Apologies, it is a rather embarrassing habit - for you - that I can never seem to break out of.” polished words came out of his mouth, something that would not be seen (or rather, __heard__) out of place at a large cooperation’s strategic meeting.__

_ _

_ _You shouldn’t jump to conclusions, you knew that - as you never knew whether his extremely formal speech was really the way he speaks, or because of the invisible wall that be put up between his family and himself._ _

_ _

__Your father’s formal statement was uncommon, yet the change of it happening would drastically increase if he was working. Which was weird, as you couldn’t fathom __what __work would make him seem like a senile, old geezer that you imagined to sit on his ass in behind the way-to-large desk.__

_ _

_ _Wait, taking in account of the large house that you own, complete with a mini pond that you often found yourself staring at, that theory… could be proven truthful._ _

_ _

_ _“Your mother should be back in a few days, thus I’ll have our old friend look after you in the meantime.”_ _

_ _

__Your eyes lit up at what he had mentioned. The ‘old friend’ always had such a frightening look sketched permanently on his face (one time you caught him sleeping, and you were __sure __he even had a scowl then as well), which wasn’t helped at all with the scar that he had on his left side, running horizontally down his eye.__

_ _

_ _You had often compared him to a certain beloved swordsman in a swashbuckling ocean adventure manga. Except that the ‘old friend’ had black hair, and tattoos._ _

_ _

_ _A lot… of tattoos._ _

_ _

__Still, what had you light up wasn’t because he somehow resemble your favourite character at the time (Gintoki has - unfortunately - moved down to third place then), but because he would often train you in kendo - and if you were lucky, __really __lucky, you would even hold a real katana in your small hands.__

_ _

_ _A twelve year old, holding a weapon that could end lives? Absurd._ _

_ _

_ _But what people don’t know won’t hurt them._ _

_ _

_ _“Aren’t you excited, [Name]!” you didn’t know how he did it, as despite your eyes shooting up by something as small as one millimetre, your father still picked out delight in no time at all. “Why couldn’t you be more like [Name] dear?”_ _

_ _

_ _Oh, seems like he was back in “doting dad” mode now._ _

_ _

_ _“Tell you what… you two want anything? Us humans will get more motivated when we have sweets right in front of our eyes, after all. Say the word and I’ll reward you two with something after I get back. Just promise me you’ll protect and behave.”_ _

_ _

_ _“... if they release a new PlayStation, then buy me that.”_ _

_ _

_ _“Then I would have the 3DS XL.”_ _

_ _

__“Sure, sure!” you had expected him to go absolutely feral about how “video games would ruin your eyes” and “you grades would drop!” and whatnot, but he did the exact opposite and accepted your selfish minds easily. Weird. “Just promise me you’ll __protect__ yourselves and __behave__.”__

_ _

_ _He didn’t have to emphasise on the “protect” and “behave” parts that sternly though… what would you protect yourself from anyway? Monsters under the bed? Strangers offering you sweets? A certain red haired devil that you had the _ _ ** _ ** _Absolute Pleasure_ ** _ ** _ _ of crossing paths more times than you had liked?_ _

_ _

_ _Still, you two voiced out the promise as clearly as possible._ _

_ _

_ _The man smiled softly, straightened up and opened the door._ _

_ _

_ _Little would you know, that you would have to buy Nintendo’s newest gaming console yourself, and that your brother would have never got the new PlayStation (that they later revealed being named PS4) because the promise was never fulfilled… on your father’s side._ _

_ _

_ _He was killed, along with countless overs, in a large-scale dining celebration, after all._ _

_ _

_ _\----- ----- -----_ _

_ _

“... sleeping beauty… up.”

And you did.

The first thing you saw was red. You had briefly wondered if you had awakened right in the middle of some sort of surgery, but the faint throb that originated from your head told you that it was far from the truth.

“Hey, do you remember who I am?” he was being serious for once. Completely serious as the smirk was absent from his face… was your injury that severe? To be honest, you __were __hit on your head, where lies the most powerful instrument known to humankind - the brain.

Still, you decided you didn’t like this ‘new’ guy that took over the boy that brimmed with confidence (though it was more like haughtiness than anything).

“... The devil in disguise.”

“Close enough.” his laughter made the throbbing pain fade away… no wait, that wasn’t true, not entirely anyway. It was still there, but at least you can put it at the back of your mind now. “I was worried...”

_ _Say wot? THE Karma was worried? D-did I die or something?_ _

_ _

But what he said afterwards shattered whatever romantic scene that the author lovingly set up.

“... I can’t blackmail you with this __lovely __photo that I took.”

With horns and a tail growing out from him, Karma held up his phone where, lo and behold, it showed a clear picture of you smiling - genuinely smiling as if all your worries and frown lines evaporated - judging by the far away temple in the background, the bastard snapped it as you were engrossed in giving a full on lecture about Oda Nobunaga.

“__Where- __**_**_how_**_**__ the fuck did you snap a picture?!__”

“That’s for me to know and you to find o-”

He didn’t even get to finish the sentence when you forcibly dragged him onto the bed (which you then noticed was on the tatami floor… you must be in an inn or something) and flipped yourself over him with you straddling the male. It would be a rather… sexual and innuendoes position but you were too engrossed on snatching the phone away from him to notice anything.

“Give me!”

“No.”

Damn him and his abnormally long arms! Or maybe you were simply too short… wait, he wasn’t even standing up! You’re definitely going to go up to the heavens and fight God with your bokken in a no mercy smack down for Him giving you such a short height.

“__Give__!”

“No wayyyyyy~”

How he could smirk with his tongue out was out of your understanding. How he could __still __avoid your frantic hands trying to take the phone was, again, out of your understanding.

** _ ** _“Gimme!”_ ** _ **

** _ ** ** _ **

_ _“Make me.”_ _

_ _

“Hey, are you all right now, [Name]-chan-”

Korosensei completely froze at the doorway - which was open - like a deer frozen in headlights. His comic yellow face turned abruptly pink and took out a small notebook before hastily scribbling in the thing as his entire life depended on it.

Like the start up in really, really, __reallllllly__ old Windows computers, your mind finally clicked why your teacher was trembling with excitement… like an old housewife begging for some juicy gossip.

You and Karma were in- well, __on__ a bed… together. If that wasn’t bad enough, you were straggling the boy with your hands pinning his wrists straight __onto __the bed itself (you finally managed to subdue his attempts at avoiding your capture).

Was it a misunderstanding? Completely.

Was the position __extremely __suggestive? Oh yeah.

“Sorry for disrupting you… have fun.”

“WAIT A MINUTE. IT’S NOT WHAT THIS LOOKS LIKE. AND WHY ARE YOU ENCOURAGING FIFTEEN YEAR OLDS ANYWAY?!”

Wait, d-don’t Korosensei have good hearing… then he must had heard __why __you were pinning Karma down in the first place, right? RIGHT?!

“By the way, I never knew you were more mischievous than I had thought, Karma-kun, with that __“make me” __part.”

Was he winking?! Was the teacher fucking winking?!

With that, leaving the door __wide open__, he vanished in Mach 20 speed.

You blinked once… twice… and another time before your mind clicked what had happened. With the ferocity of a howl, you jumped from the position you were in and gave chase to the creature that surely, __surely __will tarnish your spotless reputation.

You ultimately lost sight of him, real unfortunate you would say, you were __so __looking ward in straggling Korosensei with your bare hands, after all. With a heavy sigh, you were about to retreat back to the room, hoping that Karma was not there… but you were also hoping he __was__ \- not because you wanted to see him or anything, but he would provide an excellent way to pass the time.

<strike>No, not </strike> _ <strike> _that _ </strike> _ <strike>way you perverts.</strike> <strike></strike>

You had wanted to beat him up for taking that picture of you, that’s all. Nothing more, nothing less.

But a small section of your mind told you that perhaps you should check on the other two who were captured. It wasn’t in your nature to soothe people and soft comfort them (you were on the opposite spectrum of that), yet the more you moved back towards the room you sprinted out from, the more that guilty conscious enlarged.

So you set off to try finding Kanzaki and Kayano, blaming your sudden turn of face and personality on that hit you took. You crossed paths with them when they were walking along the corridor after getting drinks. It was here that you realised that they had ditched their school uniforms and put on comfortable yukata, and looking down, you were no different.

For some reason, you suddenly kicked yourself inwardly at not being able to snap a picture of the red haired devil wearing the yukata.

Huh, weird.

The regret that stemmed from such a small thing was larger than you had anticipated.

“[Surname]-san.” the class beauty bowed a full ninety-degrees when she saw you. You didn’t know how she knew your family name, but then again, your bad reputation was probably the one to blame for. “Are you all right? Does your head hurt? Do you feel sick? Is the world spinning-”

“Relax, I’m fine Kanzaki.”

“Thank you… for protecting us, [Surname]-san.”

Ouch, there was the usage of your surname again…

“It’s no big deal, Kayano. Don’t worry about it.”

“But your head…”

Putting your hand on the back of your head, you touched some sort of medical gauze… ah, no wonder Kayano and Kanzaki’s faces fell as soon as they saw you - it must be less because of of your intimidating presence, but the sight of the bandages that wrapped around your forehead.

“It will be fine.” you assured. Weirdly enough, you didn’t grit your teeth at their excessive questioning… this small exchange was rather relaxing if you do say yourself. It was like… you were a normal girl on a school trip instead of someone whom eighty percent of the school fears. “By the way, the name’s [Name], so drop the usage of my surname…”

At the confused and concerned looks on their face, you decided that it was fine to confide in them a little.

“Relax, I wasn’t physically abused. I spent most of my childhood living with my grandmother because my parents were often busy. She completely focused on my brother instead, so I was neglected a lot - which was why I ask people to use my first name as much as possible.”

You didn’t really “ask”, but more like… “threaten” - but they didn’t need to know about that.

“Relax guys. I won’t hurt you as long as I don’t find you irritating.”

They smiled uncertainly. Maybe you should have cracked a different joke…

In the end, after numerous banter that might have involved: Kanzaki’s extraordinary gaming skills (that she generously showed and floored you in the arcade), Terasaka’s nothing-but-muscle brain, __was Nagisa really a hundred percent male__, how to kill Korosensei, and the devil (a.k.a. Karma).

You also accepted moving your makeshift bed with the girl, now that your head was more or less all right, but you wanted to get a drink first, and you bid farewell to the two, promising them that you __will __sleep in the same room.

Drinking the delicious iced coffee, you made your way back to your room, with the aim of heaving the bed to the girls’ common room. Despite you not really looking forward being sleeping in the same room with more people than you had liked, you would never break a promise, so you sighed (again), and tossed the empty can into the bin.

It went in. A pat on the back for you!

But your moment of mentally rewarding yourself was short lived when the group of boys stampeded down the corridor, completely ignoring you. It was only thanks to Nagisa, who explained that Korosensei found out about something secretive about the boys that they gave chase.

_ _Something that they most definitely did not want people to know about… not even Nagisa. Then that probably means, giving in account to their ripe age of falling in love with the opposite - or same - gender and hormones running 24/7._ _

_ _

A smirk, unlike the one that Karma often gave, spread across your lips.

_ _I see._ _

_ _

When you were sure that there would be nobody disrupting your impossible mission, you sneakily tiptoed into the boys’ common room. With the Mission Impossible theme running in your mind, you mentally did a spit-take at the sight of Terasaka kneeling down (his back was facing you, thank God… maybe you’ll let Him off, for today). The boy straightened up and went to the left, slid the shoji door open, and left.

_ _A piece of paper…? He was either looking at it, or scribbling in it. But why would be kneel down to look? So obliterating the other deductions…_ _

_ _

You gingerly stepped into the room, now more spacious than you had realised because of its emptiness. Like Terasaka, you knelt down and examined the paper which was, as you had concluded, the boys’ tally result for whom they like.

Unsurprisingly, Kanzaki was in first place, with four tally marks. I mean, who __wouldn’t __vote for her? She was empathic, caring and a __class beauty __(which the boys agreed with your internal monologue by writing down “personality” and “face” in the “points” section).

What you didn’t expect was for your own face, drawn in a cartoon/manga style, staring right back at you. What you __certainly__ didn’t expect was the two tally marks next to your crudely drawn face.

__[Name] __| **_**_II _**_**__Looks__

_ _ Could protect both you and herself_ _

_ _ <strike>But very frightening… we’re not sure why we put her here</strike>_ _

_ _

Huh. So they hastily scribbled out the last part then. Strangely, you didn’t feel any irritation at the prospect of being given confessions or pink envelopes… but you’ll point a finger at your injury for the change in your personality. You stood up and strode outside, in search of a certain octopus-squid hybrid to kill.

  
Despite the school trip ending (and that doesn’t include the head injury, kidnapping, Korosensei shipping you and Karma now… probably, and fainting), your mood positively soared higher than ever on a trip organised by Kunugigaoka.


	6. [05] The Wolf: A Little Sister… Maybe?

When you got the news of this new, mysterious transfer student, you were indifferent. Sure, you were wondering why and how this student got kicked to the notorious End Class but you really didn’t feel the need to do any further digging. You did, however, want to at least know what she looked like, thus one email sent to Bitch-sensei later, red warning flags immediately popped up in your mind as soon as her face popped up in the attachment photo in Bitch-sensei’s reply. The bright purple hair that… looks vaguely similar to your own style aside, you could not decipher anything from her eyes that peered up at you. Nothing at all.

You couldn’t tell anything from the slight smile that she gave you, and her eyes were devoid of any emotions… did they send in a professional assassin that suppressed her emotions, focusing solely on her job…? You didn’t like this feeling that you couldn’t decipher that dawned on you, not one bit. Everything about her, even if it was only a photograph, made her unrelatable… inhumane even.

_What is this Winter Soldier shit now?_

But when you brought up your warnings that something was off, nobody took you seriously… especially now that they guilty smiled and softly assured otherwise as their sights landed on your still bandaged head.

Unfortunately for them, your gut feeling was exactly right.

This new students wasn’t a human, not at all… she wasn’t even classified as a “living being”, as she was a _machine_.

That stood behind _your _place in the classroom.

“Good morning.” the small, horizontal screen flicked to life and “she” introduced herself in a robotic voice completely devoid of any emotion. It was to be expected after all, this new transfer student was a student on paper, but “she” was a machine - something incapable of expressing emotions. “As of today, I will be attending this school. I am the “Autonomously Thinking Fixed Artillery”. It is a pleasure to meet you.”

The screen went to black.

Well, at least “she” was polite.

To bad that it was the complete opposite.

Your first session included being bombarded with anti-sensei bullets, fired from the machine without mercy that totally ignored everybody in the room. Heck, these bullets were fired out from state-of-art machine guns! And coupled with the intellect of the machine (that would collect and analyse everything available to produce the optimum result), “she” managed to shoot off the right finger of Korosensei. You were suddenly hit with the notion of feeling extremely inadequate with your hand guns and the special bokken.

Oh yes, just after a month, your request of a weapon made completely out of anti-sensei material has bore fruit. You were assessing the bokken-style thing with sharp eyes, which then turned to shock and admiration as the curves… the tsuka****[1]****… the kissaki****[2]****… everything was nothing but absolute perfection.

You did twirl around, holding up your new playmate in the air like that scene in the Lion King… good job that there was nobody that saw you… _except _for Not-Kurama.

“Talk about this… and you’ll end up ****dead****. Not-Kurama-sensei.”

The man sweat dropped, but agreed to your terms and conditions. Weirdly.

Throughout the day, that damned machine continued to fire without acknowledging any one of you in the room, thus resulting in hundreds, if not millions, of bullets littered on the floor. Of course, since your new classmate wasn’t equipped with limbs to clean up (and the fact that “she” refused to switch on no matter what anybody did), the act of making the room as spotless as usual fell to you and your class.

At the end of the day, as you cursed the machine non-stop under your breath as you walked home, you concluded that you never wanted to see another one of those anti-sensei bullets for the rest of the year - no, for the rest of your entire life.

The next day, as you trudged up the mountain, you were definitely _not _looking forward to cleaning up _yet again_, but what could you do again a fucking machine? Thus you gritted your teeth, cursed “her” some more and stomped towards the class.

“... Not that I’m complaining, but what _is _this?”

“Yesterday was annoying, so I taped it up. Got a bone to pick with me, Lone Wolf?” Terasaka answered your question as he twirled a roll of thick tape around his finger.

You stomped towards him, and watched as the male placed himself in a defensive position. Instead of punching him, you did the opposite - literally. Grabbing both of his hands, your eyes shined brighter than ever before.

You looked less than a wolf and more of a rabbit, Terasaka thought… but he didn’t dare to speak it out loud as he didn’t want to face-plant the ground, especially after what had happened last time. Besides, he could still feel a hint of bloodlust in front of him… but it was gone in the next second.

Was it really from someone who looked like she was about to bow down in thanks?!

“Thanks Terasaka!” the shine didn’t leave your eyes, “I never thought your brain would-”

“WHAT’S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?!”

“I find you _considerabl_y less annoying now.”

As you let of of his hands, Terasaka thought about what has happened in such a short span of time for your personality to turn a complete 180-degrees. But, again, he kept his mouth shut when you took out a bokken-style weapon, made out of those anti-sensei materials by the looks of it, and admired it.

Throughout the day, the “Autonomously Thinking Fixed Artillery”, as “she” was called, didn’t attempt any assassinations. Her screen didn’t even switch on. It was relaxing and you were grateful for the tapes, but you couldn’t help but feel… a twinge of _something unpleasant _and _something you certainly didn’t want to feel_ towards the machine.

Which was the reason why you found yourself reluctantly (or so you tell everyone) volunteer as the one to rip the tapes off.

You approached the machine, and hoped to God that she wouldn’t suddenly fire her guns at you… despite the bullets being useless to humans, being fired from _automatic guns_ would definitely leave a painful mark.

“Hey, you can hear me, right?”

No answer. As expected.

“You know… you shouldn’t be neglecting everyone else in those assassination plans of yours…” _even when they are nothing but full on assaults_. You finished in your mind. “because one, working with everyone will surely increase the chances of killing Korosensei and two, you will find yourself isolated more than ever if you continue down this path.”

You didn’t know why you were telling “her” all this, you didn’t even know if “she” even heard you! Still, the feeling of being isolated, neglected just because of who you are struck a painful chord with you. _Were _you being hypocritical? The “Lone Wolf” who bathed at the pleasure of being alone and growled at anybody who dared to come close talking about how _bad _it was to be left alone. But the fact that she didn’t start firing at you as you peeled off the tapes must mean that you were doing something right.

“And trust me, machine or not, you _do not _want to experience that.”

The last of them came undone.

“Well, I’ve got to go now. See you tomorrow, I guess?”

Your exit was perfect, as you felt like one of those protagonists whom just dealt a prominent changing point towards a potential friend.

… But the red haired student that was hiding on the other side shattered your image considerably. Even more so when you shocked on your saliva… again.

“ThE fUCk?!”

Needless to say, the rest of the journey home consisted of you trying to hit Karma with either your special weapon, or your fists. None of them worked though, which just downright filled you with disappointment. But your disappointment of not landing a single point of Karma was quickly turned to anger at the mere sight of your _former _vice captain.

“Hey, Yamada-_kun_.” you couldn’t stop your mouth from moving. Seriously, the boy had a bigger impact on your emotional state than Karma… and that was saying something. “So… _utterly _nice to meet you. How sad to see your head is still attached to your neck.”

“[Surname].” wow, no mockery or jeering? That was a first. “I see that not much has changed, as you are still contaminating the atmosphere around you by breathing.”

“Oh? Then why don’t we have a showdown - right here, right now - and we will finally see who can make the other submit by pure strength?”

Was that really such a good idea, when you were so close to the main campus where teachers will most definitely interfere and pinpoint all the blame on you? Maybe Karma will actually tell out how bad that whole thing was and-

“Get him [Nickname]. I’ve got your back!”

… Or not.

What did you expect? He was Akabane fucking Karma after all, the one that thrives in violence… the one that smashed wine bottles at students and scare them into fleeing… the one that you met amidst a ferocious battle between you and dozens of others.

All right, you _might have _exaggerated the last part, but the true story of how you met the red haired devil had the overall outline correct.

Tossing your school bag to Karma (you didn’t really care whether he caught it or not, but judging by the lack of ‘thud’ that followed, he must have. And if you were in a visual novel right now, that action would increase something akin to those hard-earned ‘friendship’ points), you rolled up your sleeves and securely tightened your hold on the special weapon made out of anti-sensei materials.

Yamada Katsuo didn’t ask where and why you changed your favourite weapon… or maybe he just didn’t care.

And with one last mutual glare, you charged at him, voice growling out a tiger’s roar as your pitch somehow deepened.

The clash of swords - albeit wooden and… plastic - would be heard in the next forty minutes.

\----- ----- -----

Continuing to walk your way to your house, you massaged the newly created bruise on your cheek as you complained about how Yamada was a _coward_. You don’t like losing - who does? - yet the thing that irks you more was fleeing when things go downhill instead of accepting defeat.

But then, when are battles and war fought with vigour? Even those samurai that you looked up to had assassinations and those who slither in the dark… even the Shinsengumi were heavily involved with several… let’s say _questionable methods of making people disappear._

But you didn’t want to kill Yamada. Not at all! Yet… and yet…

“Ahh… slithering his way through the people who were going home… I’ll definitely land more than a hit on his chest next time…!”

“Want my help, [Nickname]-chan?” all right, he was really teasing you now. Using both your nickname and the suffix? Now that was something people did when they want a one-way ticket to the netherworld.

“No.”

“Still, what did that poor tree even do to you for you to continuously abuse it by kicking its bark?”

“Hey, at least it’s better than attacking those students.”

“[Nickname]!” a hand on his chest, Karma looked… hurt and surprised - as if you had forgotten the date for your birthday. “plants are sentient _and _living beings too!”

… You were _really _resisting the urge to punch him in his handsome face.

\----- ----- -----

Although Yamada’s sudden and unexpected appearance soured your mood considerably, so much so that it carried to the next day, the thought of cleaning the floor _again_ put a heavy weight upon your chest.

But when the machine switched on, its screen didn’t cover a portion of the entire thing, but the full vertical side… on it, with the background full of sparkles that came straight out from a shojo anime or something was the girl from yesterday.

“Good morning, [Surname]-san!”

You had to close the door and open it again to make sure you weren’t just seeing things.

It got weirder when she became worried about the thick gauze that was stuck to your bruised cheek. Heck, the purple haired girl (you didn’t really know if it was theoretically correct to call the projection “girl” as “she” was just a machine… but for conveniences sake, you decided to go with it anyway. Besides, your teacher was either an alien or an experiment so it wasn’t fair to her if you treated her differently) even listed the best medicine and cream for your injury.

“Want me to kiss it to make it better?”

Five… four… three… two… one…

You would have broken Karma’s desk if not for Nagisa and Sugino restraining you.

“By the say, Korosensei. Just how much did you spend on her?” you asked, hours after you had calmed down as you watched the machine chat to the girls about… flowers and a garden or something similar?

Besides, you were pitying your teacher at the pathetic sight of him hutched over, as he became depressed at all the attention the newest addition to the classroom was getting. Even more so when he tried to compete with her by trying to show the image of a human face on his head. To say it was creepy would be an understatement… you wouldn’t at all be surprised if your teacher’s face showed up in your nightmares from now on.

“How did you work out it was me, [Name]-chan?” well, even if his tone was lacking its usual cheerfulness, at least it worked. He was no longer sulking.

“Well…” pushing up your glasses (“HOW DID YOU EVEN GET THAT ANYWAY?!”), you explained your deductions much like what a popular turned-to-child protagonist did, “you prioritise your students’ education above all else, thus the machine with her shooting yesterday impacted you more than anything. Besides, you aren’t the one to sit around and do nothing or let things slide, are you? Not-Kurama-sensei and Bitch-sensei couldn’t do anything as they lack the skills required to upgrade her massively like this… thus eliminating possibilities, that ends us with you.”

A circle appeared on Korosensei’s face.

“Full points, [Name]-chan!” he gently patted your shoulder, making your eyes widen at the action. “However, sensei’s top priority isn’t your education, but your safety instead. Thus I made a program that calculates everyone’s skills and position when she shoots - for both strength and your safety in the future.”

He withdrew his hand/tentacle and you found yourself missing the short contact. It was warm, after all… warmer than what you’d expect.

“I made several programmes for her to download. A wide range of facial expressions and cheerful way of speaking… then the software for operating them and memory supplements… all comes down to _twelve thousand_ yen!”

You were silent.

“Sensei only have five yen lef- wait! [Name]-chan, where are you going?!”

You had left to converse with the machine that was Korosensei’s sweat, blood and money before he had finished. And… in less than five seconds, Korosensei was back to putting his arms around his knees (although he didn’t have any… just tentacles) and resumed sulking like a child.

“[Surname]-san!” the machine brightened up even more (if it was possible, after all, she was already so cheerful when chatting to others) at the sight of you approaching her. “I thought about what you said yesterday…”

Oh? So she really was listening.

“And… I want to thank you for pushing me towards whom I am now. You were the starting point that I didn’t know… so thank you so much!”

She… didn’t have to bow so formally. It made you feel like royalty… which was unnerving (as you were sure she could easily kill you even faster than Not-Kurama) and uncomfortable.

“No problem… I guess? And call me by my name - none of that [Surname] crap.”

“Oh… but considering your background and upbringing, it wouldn’t seem right…”

  * _did the sky in her virtual world become overcast and grey just because she was uncomfortable with using my given name…?!_

But how did she know about your past anyway? You certainly didn’t give away much… and what’s with her apparent discomfort at using your given name as if you were several ranks higher than her? With a mental light bulb lighting up, you remembered that she was initially designed _and _created by top government professionals, thus she would have (or already had) access to government information to kill Korosensei… then she must had known about your neglect in your childhood. Heck, that information wasn’t even government confidential - you had seen it (along with other sensitive information) stashed away safely and securely in drawers at school.

“Then how about ‘Milady’?”

“That’s too professional!” you retaliated, sweat dropping at the large smile on her face as if she had solved a maths problem that she was working on for hours, “you’re making me sound like the head of a household or something!”

“Um… ‘Lady [Name]’? ‘[Name]-sama’? ‘Mistress [Name]’?”

“Hey… why are you adding those titles anyway… you’re beginning to sound like my caretaker. Or well, my caretaker from when I was young.”

In the end, after continuous back and forth, you had finally settled with ‘[Name]-san’ as it was the only one that didn’t make you seems like an old, rich, snobby lady living deep in the forest. Still, you felt like you just somehow earned yourself a little sister… a sister that would do _anything _for you judging by those bright eyes that followed your form everywhere you went in the classroom.

You were flattered, but also at the same time, very uncomfortable with the admiration you got.

“... Are you Ritsu or something?”

“That’s it!” a student clicked her fingers as if what you had said stroke something within her. “that’s her name! “Ritsu” is part of “autonomy” anyway so I feel it fits.”

“It’s wonderful!” she smiled, one full of sunshine. “Well then, please call me “Ritsu”!”

You didn’t have the heart to tell them that you only thought of “Ritsu” because the machine’s sparkly eyes and personality (… it wasn’t concrete yet, as you only had a hunch) reminded of Mob’s younger brother, Ritsu,… who will do anything and everything to protect Mob.

“It’s not like the machine has a will of its own.” you heard Karma talk to Nagisa as you escape the sudden horde of classmates that swarmed around Ritsu. “I wonder what that thing’s going to do after this… that’s for the proprietors who made it to decide.”

It was only when Karma referred to Ritsu as a _machine _and “it” that you realised… that you were using female pronouns all along, and that Ritsu was become more human the more you interacted with her.

You wondered what the near future holds for her. There was no doubt that her creators would view Korosensei’s upgrades as “bothersome” and “unnecessary”, after all.

You didn’t want Ritsu to become just the “Autonomously Fixed Thinking Artillery” again.

\----- ----- -----

“Good morning, everyone.”

Your fears became true tomorrow.

A narrow, vertical screen that showed off nothing but her face, the voice that came from her mouth contained no emotion - the same could be said for her eyes as well.

For Ritsu was gone, and the Autonomously Fixed Thinking Artillery was back.

To make matters worse, Korosensei was banned from doing any enhancements on her as they filed it under “harming the student” now… and even tying her up will have consequences.

“... Commencing attack preparations. Please go ahead and start the lesson, Korosensei.”

You braced yourself, wondering when she will whip out her machine guns and start shooting at Korosensei exactly like the first time she was introduces.

_Here it comes._

But instead of being showered with plastic bullets, four bouquets were shown to the class. Such an unexpected defiance to her masters - her _parents _if you want to see it that way - made your eyes widen. Ritsu had _personally _deemed the power of “cooperation” as essential, thus storing that piece of vital information away, so that there would seem to be no trace of it when her creator downgraded Ritsu.

“... Going again your parent - or something similar - huh?” you quiet chuckled, eyes forlorn with the bitter memories that resurfaced. “Wish I had your courage… I couldn’t do that.”

You weren’t sure whether if anybody had heard it - and you didn’t care.

There was nothing they, or anyone, could do to alter history.

* * *

****[1] ****Tsuka

It’s the handle of a katana/shinai/bokken etc…

****[2] ****Kissaki

It’s the tip of a katana. I _presumed _the tip of the bokken is also called that.


End file.
